When the Dame Met the Knight
by ASkinner49
Summary: It's a love/hate relationship. Bulma/Vegeta - takes place between when Goku arrives back on earth and when the androids appear.


"I can't believe what a hectic day it's been." Bulma stretched her arms and leaned back in the seat of the Capsule airplane. She and Yamcha were flying back to Capsule Corp. after experiencing a day of surprise visitors. First it was Vegeta crashing into her yard, then Frieza and his father, then that strange super Saiyan teenager, and finally and thankfully Goku.

"You're telling me! I'm exhausted." Yamcha was flying the plane and while normally totally at ease seemed a bit edgy.

"What are you even talking about? You didn't even fight anyone! That super Saiyan kid took out Frieza and his dad before anything even happened."

"Yeah… but all the stress of it wore me out."

Bulma laughed and kissed Yamcha on the cheek. "You're hopeless, Yamcha." Yamcha didn't even smile and continued flying.

_I wonder what's up with him_, Bulma thought to herself after a few minutes. Yamcha wasn't one to think deeply too often, so it was always intriguing to see him work his thoughts out for himself. Bulma watched Yamcha face: jaw set, eyebrows deeply furrowed, lips turned downward. He was clearly upset about something. Bulma knew better than to ask him what he was thinking about, though. If she ever caught Yamcha when he was like this, it was better to leave him alone than to talk to him at all. However, she never could get past the curiosity that his mood excited in her.

"Is everything alright, Yamcha?" Bulma finally asked, yielding to the desire to quench her curiosity.

Yamcha exhaled out of his nose roughly. "Just got a lot on my mind." She always got that answer first. She already knew that and it didn't satisfy any curious inkling she had.

"Anything in particular?" Bulma pressed. Yamcha looked over to Bulma, shakes his head and looks forward once more and remains quiet. "Oh, come on, Yamcha! What's going on?"

"I was just thinking about the last thing Goku said, okay? Us having a baby…"

"How do we even know he was being serious? And besides, he didn't say _us_ he said _me _and didn't mention when, either."

"How do we know he wasn't serious? And who else could be the father? I mean, really?" Yamcha paused and looked suspiciously out of the corner of his eye. "Unless you've been seeing someone else…"

"Seeing someone else? Don't be ridiculous. Why would you even say something like that?" Yamcha huffed once more. "You don't really think I would do that, do you?" Bulma was hurt. She loved Yamcha. Why would she ever betray him like that?

"You seemed awfully flirty with Vegeta today." Bulma snapped her head toward him in surprise. Was he being serious right now? He called that flirting? That was simply playful banter…

Tears began to prick at Bulma's eyes as she stared at Yamcha. "I would never do that to you." Bulma turned away from Yamcha as the tears started to roll down her cheeks. "I would never do anything to hurt you, Yamcha. I can't believe you would even say something like that."

Yamcha's expression softened and he looked over to Bulma. "Hey, Babe. I'm sorry. You're right. I should never have said that. I guess I was jealous that Vegeta was getting your attention and I was pushed aside."

Bulma half-smiled through her tears and turned to Yamcha. "So you were jealous?" Yamcha's sympathetic face falls and he rolls his eyes and looks forward again. "I guess you should be. He is pretty cute." Bulma laughed on the inside as she saw a jealous frown cross Yamcha's face. She playfully stuck her tongue out at him and wiped the remaining tears off of her face. _At least he still cares about me enough to be jealous_, Bulma thought. _He could have been less of a jerk about it though._

The plane flew on and Yamcha didn't say anything else. As they approached Capsule Corp., Bulma glanced at the space pod Vegeta arrived in earlier that day crashed in their back yard. It may have put Yamcha on edge, but she actually really enjoyed having Vegeta around for a little while. Vegeta had flown off to train after the news about the androids from that teenager, so the house was empty when they arrived. _Where did he go anyway? _Bulma asked herself as she and Yamcha exited the plane. _I hope he comes back._

* * *

Vegeta fired a huge energy blast at a nearby rock formation. _Kakarot's even stronger than before_, he thought to himself as he kicked and punched the air. _I have been training non-stop and he's been traveling in a space pod!_ Vegeta flew toward a cliff at full speed and fired another blast before he hit it. The cliff disintegrated before him and he hovered in the air where it once stood. _Kakarot's a super Saiyan, and I am stuck on this miserable planet trying to play catch-up with a miserable low-class soldier!_

Vegeta landed and stared across the desert reviewing the events of the day. He had been forced to land the pod after running out of fuel only to find that Kakarot had still not returned. Then Frieza and his father show up out of the blue and are defeated without even a moment's hesitation by that random kid that showed up unannounced.

_Another super Saiyan, _Vegeta thought furiously. _He didn't even look like a Saiyan, but there's no doubt that's what he was. _Vegeta dodged through rock outcroppings and formations as fast as he could. Something about that kid seemed so… familiar, but the kid ensured Vegeta that they had never met. Why had that kid stared at him the entire time? Vegeta was once again aware of the pink 'BADMAN' shirt he was wearing. The kid had said that he had liked it. Vegeta laughed to himself. "_You would"_ he had told the kid.

_Why would that woman dress me like this?_ Vegeta looked down at the pink shirt and yellow pants Bulma had forced him to wear. _Fashionable my foot. This is ridiculous._ Vegeta tore off the shirt and tossed it to the ground. "Stupid woman."

* * *

*Click* The lights in the living room went dark as Yamcha flicked the switch. "Finally… some time alone."

"Yamcha, I really want to watch this show," Bulma reminded Yamcha as he rejoined her on the sofa. "You promised you'd let me watch this tonight. We watched that stupid movie of yours yesterday."

"Hey! _Airplane! _is not a stupid movie," Yamcha argued indignantly.

"Keep telling yourself that, Yamcha." Bulma turned her attention back to her show. _I wonder if Prince Ridatow will reveal himself to her tonight…_ Bulma felt Vegeta's arm go around her shoulders and she cuddled closer into his chest. Bulma reached for the bowl of popcorn on the coffee table, but Yamcha gently grabbed her hand and kissed it. He continued kissing up her arm and up to her neck causing Bulma to shiver as it always did. Bulma desperately tried to keep her attention on the show. _What is Lord Pordalt doing at…?_ Yamcha nipped at Bulma's neck gently causing her to moan quietly.

"Yamcha, I want to watch…" but the sentence faded off as Yamcha kissed her. Bulma felt Yamcha's arms close around her body and pull her closer to him. Bulma couldn't think straight as Yamcha ran his hand down her back to her backside and squeezed it gently. Bulma shivered again. All thoughts of what was on TV were gone as Yamcha other hand found its way to her shirt buttons. Yamcha easily unfastened them top to bottom until Bulma's shirt fell completely open exposing her red lace bra Yamcha had given her illuminated by the light of the television. Yamcha groaned passionately and leaned into Bulma exposed chest. Bulma fumbled with the button on his pants when…

*Click* Yamcha and Bulma froze as the overhead lights of the room turned on suddenly. Bulma's parents weren't expected to be home until the next day and anyone she knew would have called before coming over. Bulma quickly reached down and started rebuttoning her shirt as footsteps came toward the sofa. Yamcha sat up and looked over the sofa and Bulma saw his expression of surprise and concern turn into disgust.

Yamcha stood up and turned around. "What are you doing here?" Yamcha asked the visitor. Bulma finished buttoning her shirt and sat up to see who was there. There, about three feet away, stood Vegeta, shirtless and covered in dust.

"I believe that I am staying here until further notice considering the invitation was extended to me when I arrived," Vegeta answered glancing between Bulma and Yamcha with a smirk. Bulma's face heated and she knew she had to have been redder than the bra she was wearing. "I assume I'll be in the same room as before."

Bulma nodded. She knew he could probably guess what was going on before he turned on the lights, but maybe she could play it off and he'd just assume he was wrong… "Why don't you join us? We were just watching-"

Vegeta chuckled roughly. "No thanks. There are more important things for me to think about. Besides I would probably only be a distraction from whatever enthralling thing caused you both to forget how to button you clothes." Bulma looked to Yamcha who was frowning and buttoning his pants and then down at herself and noticed that her shirt buttons were off by one hole. She felt herself blush deeper and crossed her arms to cover her telling mistake. Vegeta turned and started walking away, but stopped and turned back to Yamcha.

"What is your problem?" Yamcha grunted angrily.

"I just thought I would warn you that someone with such small stature should think twice about wearing pants so tight." And with that, Vegeta walked to the room he had stayed in before.

Bulma heaved a sigh of relief and uncrossed her arms when she heard Vegeta's door close. She reached for the buttons on her blouse and walked over to Yamcha who was still glaring at the hall Vegeta disappeared down. "So where were we?" Bulma asked slyly, undoing the top buttons of her shirt to expose her bra again.

Yamcha didn't even look at her when he responded angrily, "Why did you say that?" Bulma jumped at his tone and stepped back. "You had to invite him to join us, didn't you? That is just so like you! Don't you ever think of anyone but yourself?"

Bulma put her hands on her hips and scowled. "Yamcha! I was just trying to play it cool. I figured he was getting the wrong idea… well, the right idea… but I still didn't want him thinking that and…"

"Playing it cool? Why the hell do you think that asking him to join us is playing it cool? It's just plain stupid! He's dangerous and I don't like him staying here with you, especially if you're alone."

"What? You think he's going to sneak into my room in the middle of the night? Fat chance! Besides, if you haven't noticed, I can take care of myself."

"But he's so much stronger than you!"

"So are you, but I still manage to get you to listen to me." Yamcha grunted in frustration and walked to the other side of the room. "Don't tell me you're jealous of Vegeta, again!"

"You do seem to give him your undivided attention when he's around. What does it even matter that I'm your boyfriend? Why don't you just sleep with him?"

"Shut up, Yamcha!" Bulma cried indignantly. This was the second time Yamcha accused her of wanting to sleep with someone else and Bulma had had enough. Bulma paced back and forth in front of Yamcha in rage. "Just because I talk to him does not mean I want to sleep with him! I still can't believe you would even begin to think that I would consider doing that to you. Just because I don't fawn over your every word and action doesn't mean I give Vegeta more attention than I give you!"

"I guess you're right, babe." Bulma looked at Yamcha and could barely contain her anger as she noticed him staring at her exposed chest with lust and the unmistakable lump in his pants. Yamcha walked over to Bulma and placed his hands on her hips drinking in the sight of her body.

Bulma pushed Yamcha away. "No way, Yamcha! I think it's time you went home for the night." Bulma walked over to the door, opened it, and motioned for Yamcha to leave.

"But, babe…" Yamcha whined. He walked over to Bulma and pulled her close to him again. _He is such a man! He can't take a hint of a rejection, or even a blatant no!_

Once again, Bulma pushed Yamcha away. "No, Yamcha! Goodnight."

Yamcha face fell as he finally realized that Bulma was being serious. "Bulma, are you really going to do this to me?"

Bulma glared at him. "You did this to yourself." She grabbed Yamcha's jacket off the hook and threw it at him as he walked out the door. "Don't bother calling. I'll call you."

Bulma slammed the door and stormed to her room. _The nerve of him! I can't believe he said that. He'll just have to wait for more sex if that's all he's going to think about._ Bulma lay down on her bed and put her arms behind her head._ Oh, who am I kidding? I'll call him tomorrow. Hopefully he'll apologize._

* * *

"Don't you think so, Yamcha?"

Yamcha jumped and tore his eyes away from Bulma's breasts to look at her face. "Wha… What?"

"Honestly, Yamcha. My face is up here!" Bulma pointed irritably at her face and turned back to her work. She had been in a bad mood all day and it was wearing Yamcha out. They were sitting in Bulma's room and she had been talking non-stop and working on some project Yamcha didn't understand.

Yamcha smiled and scratched the back of his head. "Sorry, Bulma. I just spaced out there." Bulma rolled her eyes in response and continued fiddling with a circuit board. _It's a good thing that she didn't press for an answer. I have no idea what she was talking about._

Yamcha continued to eye Bulma's body when suddenly she set her tools down and yelled exasperatedly. She looked at Yamcha and he could tell she was about to start ranting about something she knew she was right about. _I better brace myself, _Yamcha thought to himself. _This could be about just about anything._

"I am really worried about Vegeta." This took Yamcha completely by surprise, but before he could even say anything, Bulma continued. "I overheard him talking to my dad yesterday and he said he wanted the Capsule pod modified to go up to 300 times Earth's normal gravity!"

Yamcha leaned back in his chair and laced his fingers together behind his head. "I can't believe that you're concerned about Vegeta! Don't you remember what he did on Namek? What's the big deal anyway? It's just gravity."

"And you're just a numbskull!" Bulma added. "Do you know how dangerous 300 times normal gravity can be?"

"Of course I do! If you don't remember, I trained in ten times normal gravity on King Kai's planet. It was a cinch."

"There's a big difference between ten and 300, Yamcha!"

Yamcha was steadily becoming more irritated. "Come on, Bulma! I would probably be able to do it, no sweat! He's a wimp and will probably just kill himself while he's training. Then he'll finally be out of our lives and leave us alone!"

"I can't believe you're saying this, Yamcha! It's never good for anyone to die, even if they have done horrible things in their past. I don't think either of you can handle 300 times normal gravity!"

"Why do you even care, Bulma? It's just Vegeta. Let him do what he wants. If he gets hurt, what does it even matter?"

"You are such a selfish pig! At least_ he_ has dedication. It's a trait that I actually find rather attractive."

Yamcha went red in the face as Bulma spoke. _How could she say that? I have plenty of dedication! I've been training… sort of… a little._

"At least there's a man around here that can show commitment. He's pretty cute, too." Yamcha could feel Bulma looking at him, knowing she was getting to him.

That was the last straw for Yamcha. He stood up, pushing his chair back, causing it to break against the wall. "I'll see you later… maybe," he said coldly and he walked out of her room and out of the house. _Why does she care anyway? He's a bad guy! He killed me, for god's sake. She must have just been trying to make me angry. Well, she did a damn good job. _Yamcha made his way to his car, climbed in, slammed the door shut, and cranked the ignition. _She has to have just been trying to work me up. That's got to be it! She can't really have feelings for him, can she?_

* * *

The kitchen table gave a loud thud as Bulma slammed her hands down on it. "I'm serious Vegeta! This is really dangerous!" Bulma watched Vegeta standing by the sliding glass doors with his arms crossed in front of his chest; a slight frown on his face. She had been trying for the past ten minutes to convince him to slow down his training. "You're going to flatten yourself! No human can withstand 300 times Earth's gravity."

"Stupid woman! You don't know anything! Can't you see this is the only way I will get stronger than Kakarot?"

"Is that what you're worried about? Don't you think staying alive is a little more important?"

"What does it even matter to you? Why do you care?"

Bulma recoiled at his unexpected question. Why did she care so much? "I… I don't care! I just don't want a man-pancake in my back yard. Gross!" Vegeta just laughed roughly and walked out of the sliding glass door in the kitchen to the pod.

Bulma stood with her fists clenched, shaking with rage. _Of all the ignorant, self-absorbed, brainless jerks…_ but her thoughts were cut off by the sound of the kitchen door opening. She turned around jumped when she saw Yamcha leaning against the door frame, frowning slightly.

"Oh my god, Yamcha! I hate it when people do that. How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough." Yamcha stood up and walked toward Bulma. "I thought you weren't going to worry about Vegeta anymore."

Bulma looked at the ground and blushed. "I'm not worried about him…"

"Really? The five minutes I heard you spend trying to convince Vegeta to be careful tells me otherwise." Bulma blushed deeper. She had promised Yamcha she would leave Vegeta alone and he, very clearly, caught her breaking that promise.

"You heard the end, though. I don't care about him, but the thought of having to clean up someone flattened by excessive gravity training sickens me." Bulma continued studying her shoes, avoiding eye contact with Yamcha. _I hope he buys this,_ Bulma thought, glancing up at Yamcha._ I don't have a better explanation._

After a few moments, Yamcha smiled and laughed. "I guess you're right. A wimp like him would probably get squashed so hard, he would be unrecognizable." Bulma tried to laugh along with him. She was still concerned about Vegeta, and there was nothing she could do to change his mind.

Bulma led Yamcha to her room where she sat at her worktable and he jumped and lounged on her bed. Bulma grabbed tweezers and a soldering iron and bent over the circuit board she was completing for her father. Just as she was soldering on the last component, she felt a warm breath on her neck and Yamcha's lips grazed her shoulder.

"Have I ever told you how sexy I find you when you concentrate?" Yamcha ran his hands over her bare arms which were now shaking uncontrollably. Bulma reached and placed the iron back in its hold before she dropped it.

"Yamcha, you just about made me ruin this entire board!"

"But I couldn't help myself," his hands traveled over her chest, down her stomach, to her legs. "You look too good to resist right now."

Yamcha continued to place kisses along Bulma's neck and his hands roamed freely over her body as she was paralyzed by the sensations coursing through her. Finally overwhelmed, Bulma stood and jumped on Yamcha, wrapping her legs around his waist and locking her lips to his.

Yamcha walked them over to the bed and sat Bulma down, immediately pulling her tank over her head and unfastening her bra without any trouble. Bulma laid back and saw the passion she felt was also alive in Yamcha's eyes as they washed over her exposed chest. Yamcha leaned down and kissed Bulma passionately and Bulma couldn't imagine herself ever being with any other man.

* * *

Dodge. Charge. Shoot. Dodge. Block. Shoot. Vegeta ducked and jumped heavily around the pod. He had trained hard and quickly to reach this level of gravity so soon. He was currently training at the maximum gravity setting and he was pushing himself to his limit. Bulma's father had created training machines for the pod, and they were really making him work.

Bulma…

_I cannot believe that woman! She assumes that I will do as she commands and willingly!_ Vegeta ducked and an energy ball grazed his hair. He shook his head forcefully; willing himself to stay focused and stood up once more. _She'll be the death of me!_

Vegeta continued to train, but his mind would not stop wandering from what he was doing. _I would be so much stronger now if not for that infuriating woman! Forcing me to sleep; insisting that I am going to kill myself. There are no redeeming features about her… except maybe those legs._ Vegeta visualized Bulma in her usual shorts, but stopped suddenly as he realized what he was thinking about. Vegeta blocked an energy ball coming at him, neutralizing the blast. _That was too close. What the devil is wrong with me? What was I just thinking about?_

Heaving himself into a ready stance, Vegeta ducked and rolled through more blasts sent by the machines. _That woman! She is responsible for this! Her selfishness, her piercing, annoying voice, her know-it-all attitude, her… curvaceous body… her breasts in that low cut shirt she always wears…_ Vegeta could see it all too clearly.

Almost too late, Vegeta snapped back to reality to see a blast headed straight towards him. Instinctively, Vegeta fired back a blast twice as powerful. Vegeta felt the pod start to shake and saw cracks in the walls before and huge shock hurled him into the ceiling and knocked him unconscious.

* * *

Vegeta awoke under a pile of rubble. The pod had completely disintegrated under the power of his blast. Vegeta reached out to clear the pieces of wall and debris off of him but groaned as he felt a sharp pain in his ribs and arms.

"Oh my god! Vegeta?"

"What a blast! I don't think anyone could have survived that."

"Yamcha! Don't say that! We have to help Vegeta!"

Vegeta summoned all his strength and willpower to push himself out from under the rubble. "I don't need your help," he managed to insist.

"Vegeta…" but Bulma's voice disappeared as darkness fell over Vegeta and he fell down, unconscious once again.

* * *

Vegeta opened his eyes to find himself inside his room at Capsule Corp. and immediately felt a sting in his chest. He was able to contain a cry and closed his eyes tight, willing the pain to disappear to no avail. The pain was making Vegeta's head swim. He looked to his right and saw Bulma fast asleep at the desk next to his bed with her head in her arms._ What is she doing here?_ was the last thing he remembered before he slipped back into darkness.

* * *

"Mom, will you just leave it alone?"

"But, Honey, I really believe he is very nice." Vegeta opened his eyes and blinked at the light in the room coming through the window. Vegeta heaved himself up on his elbows and winced as pain shot through his torso and arms.

"Really, Mom? Why are you so adamant about this? Just because he's staying here doesn't mean he's going to be here forever… or that I even want him here forever!"

"I'm just saying, Darling, a strong man with such dedication to his work like Vegeta is great husband material."

"Mom!" Vegeta tried to push himself up further off the bed, but as he moved, a great stab of pain shot through his chest and he let out a stifled groan as he fell back on the bed. "I've got to go check on Vegeta. I think he's awake."

"I don't need your help!" Vegeta said as loud as he could. It came out little more than a whisper because of the constricting pain in his chest. Bulma let herself into his room and Vegeta frowned as she walked toward him. The last thoughts in his mind before the explosion were distracting thoughts about this woman. _It's her fault I'm in this situation! It would be better if she just left me alone._

"Alright, Vegeta. It's good to see you awake, finally. You've been out for two days." Vegeta grunted and tried to push himself up on his elbows, again. "Don't even try to get up, yet, Vegeta. You broke several ribs and your arms took some major cuts and burns." Vegeta opened his mouth to contest her command but before anything came out she interrupted. "I wouldn't suggest talking, either." Vegeta shut his mouth and let out a low growl.

_Why is she even bothering with this? It would be so much easier for both of us if she just left me alone. I can't be bothered with this. This is a minor setback and the sooner I get back to training the better._ Bulma busied herself with changing Vegeta's bandages and Vegeta had nothing to do but watch. He tried to focus on how he would train without the Capsule pod, but Bulma was leaning over him, rebandaging his left arm… really close… her chest, perfectly visible with the tube-top she was wearing, almost touching his…

"Ah! Damn it, woman!" Vegeta immediately groaned at his outburst and Bulma jumped and dropped the bandage she was removing from Vegeta's arm.

"Oh, god, Vegeta. I'm so sorry!" Bulma picked the bandage back up and looked at Vegeta apologetically.

"What the hell was that?" Vegeta's arm throbbed at whatever Bulma had just done.

"The bandage is stuck to your arm. I have to get it off or it's going to fuse with your skin." Vegeta just frowned deeper and looked away.

Bulma started to free the bandage again. Vegeta held his breath while she cautiously removed the strip from his arm. It was all Vegeta could do not to blast Bulma as the tender skin on his arm was pulled. _ She's trying to kill me! I bet she just wants that stupid low class Kakarot to stay stronger than me! I can't show weakness. She will only exploit it._

Bulma finished up wrapping Vegeta's arms, ensuring that the bandages would not stick to him again. "See, that wasn't so bad." Vegeta's let out the breath he had been holding and started panting to avoid the stinging pain from a large intake of breath. "I've got to get back to work. I think my mom's bringing you some food. I guess she'll have to feed it to you." Vegeta didn't respond and watched as Bulma left the room.

_Her mother, feeding me? I am not a baby. I can feed myself! Her mother even said I was strong… and good husband material? What the hell was she even saying?_

* * *

Yamcha eased open the door to the room Vegeta was staying in. Bulma was just setting food down for Vegeta. Yamcha softly tapped his knuckles on the door to get Bulma's attention and opened the door wider. Unfortunately, Vegeta noticed him first.

"Get out of here. Having one of you around me all the time is bad enough. Having two weak earthlings around may be a little too much for me to handle."

Yamcha almost lost it. _That basta-_

Bulma turned around and smiled, slightly confused. "Yamcha! I thought you were training outside. What's up?"

"I was wondering if I could talk to you for a little bit."

"I was about to feed Vegeta-"

"I can feed myself, woman!" Vegeta interrupted. To prove his point, Vegeta grabbed the plate of food Bulma had just sat on the desk by his bed and started shoveling food into his mouth. Every now and then Yamcha noticed a twitch in the corner of his eye, as if he was still in pain.

"Whatever," Bulma said dejectedly. "Normal people with fevers don't usually eat, so you're lucky you're getting anything. And don't be whining to me later when your arms are sore." She turned to Yamcha. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Could we go somewhere a bit more private?" Yamcha looked over Bulma's shoulder to Vegeta who was now working on his third plate of food.

"Alright… is everything ok?" Yamcha and Bulma walked down the hall to Bulma's room and Yamcha closed the door behind them.

"Look, Bulma. You have to stop taking care of Vegeta." Bulma's eyebrows shot up. _Figures she wouldn't see this coming,_ Yamcha thought to himself disdainfully.

"What? Why?"

"You need to stop taking care of him and start taking care of me!"

"Last time I checked, Yamcha, you were not the one who was bed ridden." Bulma smirked and crossed her arms.

_She's not taking this seriously! _"Bulma, I don't like that you're taking care of Vegeta. I've been training as hard as him and I need to be taken care of, too!"

"Really, Yamcha? You're being stupid! Vegeta needs someone to take care of him or he'll really mess himself up."

"He doesn't want to be taken care of! Who cares if he recovers anyway?"

"I care that he almost died!" Bulma turned away from Yamcha.

Yamcha frowned. "Would you care if I almost died?"

Bulma whipped back towards him after he said this. "What do you mean? Of course I would!"

"It doesn't sound like you care very much."

"Yamcha, what are you talking about?"

"The other night I almost died." Bulma gave him a skeptical, but worried, look. "I'm not joking. I decided that I would try to train in Vegeta's pod at higher gravity. There's no way that he is training at 300 times earth's normal gravity, Bulma. He can't be that much stronger than me. I was nearly crushed by the gravity when I turned it on and I had only just enough energy to return the pod to normal gravity. I could have died."

Yamcha watched as Bulma's eyes grew wide at the last part. _I hope she's happy now! She's been too worried about Vegeta training she hasn't even thought about me. Now she has to understand why she needs to stop taking care of Vegeta. He's probably faking it anyway._

Bulma seemed to be still digesting the information Yamcha had just told her and Yamcha waited patiently for the desired reaction. It didn't come.

Bulma seemed to grow to twice her size as she began to scream at Yamcha. "YOU IDIOT! WHY WOULD YOU EVEN THINK TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT! OF COURSE YOU CAN'T TRAIN AT THE SAME LEVEL AS VEGETA, HE'S BEEN WORKING ON TRAINING AT THAT LEVEL GRADUALLY! WHAT MADE YOU THINK THAT YOU COULD DO THAT? IF YOU HAD DIED IT WOULD HAVE BEEN YOUR OWN DAMN FAULT! I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT I COULD BE WITH SOMEONE WHO IS SO DAMN STUPID!"

Yamcha had grown angrier and angrier as Bulma screamed. "It would have been _my_ fault?" he managed through clenched teeth. Bulma stared at him, seething. "It's completely Vegeta's fault! He's not training at that high of a level. He's lying to you to get your attention. He's probably faking the injuries, too."

"He's not faking the training or the injuries, Yamcha," Bulma replied dangerously. "He's already asked my dad to increase the gravity capacity of the pod and I'd like to see you try to fake third degree burns on your arms."

"Why are you defending him? You remember what he did on Namek!"

"I remember much better than you do. You were dead!"

"Killed by HIM! You remember watching that, right? Why don't you just kill me again so that I won't be able to be brought back to life again?"

"You'd be surprised how tempting that is right now."

Yamcha's frown deepened as he and Bulma continued to glare at each other. "Can I ask you, again, why you care so much for Vegeta after everything he's done?"

"I don't want anyone to die around me if I can avoid it!" Bulma's glare suddenly turned into a wicked smirk. "Besides, I'm starting to like having Vegeta around. He really is nice to look at…"

Yamcha's anger boiled to a level he had never felt before. He clenched his fists as furious thoughts raced through his head. _I can't believe her! She likes having him around? What does she like about him anyway? How could she even like caring for him? Something must be going on! She can't seriously expect me not to find out!_

"You like having him around?" Yamcha finally said viciously. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You do like to throw yourself at anything on two legs with a penis!"

Bulma's face fell and Yamcha felt a sick satisfaction in knowing that he had gotten to her. After a moment, Bulma's face hardened and she glared even more dangerously at Yamcha than before. "Get out," she said coolly. Her tone was icy and her body projected the same chilling fierceness from her face. All this froze Yamcha with surprise. He had never heard her use this tone in any of their arguments. "Get out," Bulma said once again.

Yamcha was steaming, despite Bulma's icy attitude. "You want to be alone with _him_, now? What? Am I not good enough for you anymore? Is that why you refuse to sleep with me anymore? You're too exhausted from screwing him?"

"GET OUT!" Bulma screamed finally.

"Gladly." Yamcha wrenched open the door, tearing it off its hinges. He threw it against the wall and walked out the door. "Have fun humping the murderer. You two deserve each other."

As he walked down the hall, Yamcha heard Bulma screaming and throwing things in her room and felt the same satisfaction at her rage from before.

Vegeta's voice came through the door of his room as Yamcha passed it. "Keep it down, woman! Your screaming is making it hard to sleep!"

"F*** you, Vegeta!" Bulma screamed, louder than ever. "Shut the hell up."

_She even argues with him like she does with me. It could be true… it is true… or is it not? I can't believe she would do this to me… actually I can._ Yamcha walked out of Capsule Corp. and to his buzz of a saw came through the wall from Bulma's room as he climbed in and started the engine. _This is all your fault, Bulma,_ Yamcha fumed to himself._ The hell with it! I need a drink. _ Yamcha slammed down the gas and sped away from Capsule Corp.

* * *

Bulma sat exhausted in the shattered remains of her room. She had never gotten this upset with Yamcha in any fight they had ever had. Destroying her room was a new reaction, but Yamcha had basically called her a whore! She felt she had an excuse to destroy something… or everything. She sat on her bed with her knees up to her chest rocking slightly and taking shuddering breaths ever so often.

She had kicked Yamcha out over an hour ago and had been crying for almost as long. _I have to pull myself together. Crying isn't going to solve anything._ Bulma took several deep breaths and stretched her body out of the fetal position she had taken.

Bulma began running through the argument once more. Yamcha was convinced that she was sleeping with Vegeta. _Does Yamcha really think that, or is he just saying that because he's jealous that I'm spending so much time caring for Vegeta._ Bulma's heart sank as she thought about Yamcha. _I love Yamcha! There was no way that I could have even thought about cheating on him. It's despicable! No matter how many times I tell him, he never seems to believe me! He doesn't trust me at all! I haven't given him any reason to doubt my loyalty to him, but he just keeps assuming the worst of me. How could he believe that I am that shallow and vindictive? _ These thoughts, and more, ran through Bulma's mind as she began to pick up the broken contraptions and destroyed furniture from her rampage before.

_I'll show him!_ _He can't tell me what to do! I am not his to command. He can't tell me not to take care of Vegeta! Ooooh I'll show him good._ Bulma dropped the leg of her desk she had picked up and raced quietly down the hall to Vegeta's room. She opened the door cautiously and peeked around to see Vegeta asleep on his bed. Bulma entered and sat at the chair to the desk which she had sat in for so long when Vegeta first was injured.

Vegeta shivered and reached for the blanket which had been kicked off at some point. Bulma placed her hand on his forehead. _He's still burning up. I better get a cool cloth._ Bulma retrieved cloths and a tub of ice water from the kitchen and returned to Vegeta's room. Sitting back down, she dipped one of the cloths in the water, rung it out, and gently placed it on Vegeta's brow.

Bulma held the cloth in place and looked at Vegeta's face in his sleep. His expression was the most relaxed she had ever seen it, but still not worry-free. His mouth was still set and the corners turned down. _He still looks so proud, even in his sleep. He has so much conviction, and it's admirable, even if I don't agree with what it is for._

Vegeta frowned in his sleep and he turned over suddenly and kicked the blanket off once more and it fell on the floor. Bulma pulled away from him as he continued to toss and turn in a feverish dream. She refreshed the cloth and reached once more for Vegeta's forehead, trying to catch it as he flipped back and forth. Bulma struggled, but finally was able to place the cool rag on Vegeta's head, calming Vegeta momentarily.

Bulma looked down at the blanket that Vegeta had kicked to the ground and felt him shivering under her hand. She reached for the blanket and tried to recover Vegeta's sleeping form with one arm as she kept the cloth in place, but failed miserably. Willing Vegeta to lay still for a minute, Bulma removed her had from his head, leaving the cloth, and started covering Vegeta with the blanket again. Bulma pulled the blanket up to his exposed chest and became distracted from her task.

_The last time I saw him shirtless was that night when he walked in on… _Bulma blushed at this memory. _He's changed since then. I can't believe how defined his abs are! I bet they're rock hard and his chest is so smooth. I wish Yamcha had abs like Vegeta's. I just want to run my hands over them and…_

Bulma jumped as Vegeta fidgeted, shocking her out of her thoughts. Remembering her thoughts from the past minute, Bulma blushed deeper. _What the hell was that about?_ She pulled the blanket all the way over Vegeta and sat back down at the desk.

She thought of Yamcha and the fight they just had. Tears pricked at Bulma's eyes again, but she wiped them away quickly and shook her head. _I'm not going to cry about this anymore. I wish this hadn't happened, but it is his fault! He is going to regret what he said!_

* * *

The door closed. Vegeta peeked through his eyelids to make sure Bulma had actually left and opened them fully when he saw that she was no longer there. He'd been forced to lie in bed for a week, now, and he was getting tired of being treated like a baby for such insignificant wounds. Vegeta sat up, tore the blankets off himself, and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He stood up and cautiously made his way over to the door.

_I wonder where that woman went. She usually tells me if she's coming back. Though, she does think I am asleep. Maybe she got bored and went to find someone to scream at._ Vegeta chuckled to himself and opened the door slowly. He looked around it to check for Bulma and, seeing that the coast was clear, started out down the hall. _I think I may actually do it! She thought she could keep me out of commission. Ha! She obviously doesn't understand who she's dealing with-_

Vegeta's thoughts came to a screeching halt as Bulma appeared around the corner, with a tray piled with plates of food. "And just where do you think you're going, Vegeta?" Bulma face had a knowing, smug, annoyed expression, as if she had expected him to do this just now. Vegeta did not like it.

"I take orders from no one!"

"You get back in your room right now!"

"No way. I don't have to listen to you."

"You listen to me right now or I will never cook for you again!"

Vegeta laughed. "That would be a good thing…" Bulma glared in a way that she usually reserved for Yamcha, but Vegeta just glared back with the same vicious expression.

"Get back in your room right now." Vegeta grunted angrily and returned to his temporary prison.

"Vegeta," Bulma started as he sat down on his bed and leaned back against a couple of pillows, crossing his arms across his chest as always. "If you don't slow down and wait to be fully recovered before training again, you're going to kill yourself! You know that…" but Vegeta tuned her out quickly. Bulma's voice easily betrayed when she was about to give a speech and Vegeta really didn't care to listen to what she was talking about.

_How the hell am I going to be able to keep training if she keeps watching over me like a falcon?_ Vegeta tensed in frustration and almost grunted as his ribs painfully twinged at the movement._ Blasted ribs! This can't hold me back! I have been confined to this room so long I'm not thinking straight. _

Vegeta looked up at Bulma, who was still pacing around rambling about who-knows-what. _This damn woman keeps interfering with everything._ Bulma was pacing about two feet away from the bed. Vegeta looked her up and down. She was wearing tight shorts and a tight cutoff t-shirt which stopped right above her navel. Her backside was perfectly shaped from the shorts and her large breasts tugged the shirt tighter around the chest than a normal woman's and her legs seemed to go on forever.

Bulma stopped in front of Vegeta and crossed her arms. "… you understand why you have to take it slow. Okay Vegeta?" Vegeta's eyes snapped to Bulma's face; she was waiting for an answer.

Vegeta stood up quickly to protest whatever she was talking about. "Damn it, woman! You can't tell me what to do!" This time, the pain was just too much. Vegeta doubled over, holding his ribs with one hand and catching himself on the desk with the other. A groan of pain escaped him.

Bulma rushed to his side. "Vegeta! Are you okay? Here, let me help…"

Vegeta pushed her arm away roughly causing her to fly back and hit the wall, knocking the wind out of her. "I don't… need… your help," Vegeta gasped at her. But even that forced sentence caused Vegeta's face to distort even further with pain.

Bulma was gasping too, trying to regain oxygen to her temporarily useless lungs. She was, however, able to glare at Vegeta. "That… what you… get," she managed, still wheezing desperately. "I knew… you weren't… ready."

* * *

"Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine. Ten thousand." Vegeta pushed himself up with his thumb and forefinger of his left hand. He had been at this for almost three hours and it was such a release! The bandages around Vegeta's arms and torso were starting to fall off in the 450x gravity setting Vegeta was working at. He stood up cautiously, shaking his left arm out. Vegeta took a short intake of air as the burns on his arm stung ruthlessly, reminding him that he was not at his best. _At least that damn woman finally left the house! I didn't think I was ever going to have time to myself._

As if on cue, the video messaging screen in the pod flashed to life with a screen-sized image of Bulma's face, her expression not one to be toyed with. "Vegeta! What the hell are you doing? Get back inside this second! You're going to hurt yourself!"

"Humph." Vegeta turned away from the screen and started kicking and punching.

"That's it!" The screen went black and Vegeta smirked knowing he had gotten the better of her finally. _She thinks she can control me. I wonder if she thinks I am valiant. I can't see how anyone could not be impressed with what I've accomplished. I bet her beloved Yamcha would soil himself if he could see this now._ Vegeta stopped, shook his head to clear his thoughts, and continued his training routine. _Why do I even care what she thinks? I have to do this to get better than Kakarot. Getting that virus is going to set him back and then I, the prince of Saiyans will finally be the greatest of all fighters in the universe! See what she thinks about her friends once I destroy those pesky androids._

Prrreww… The lights in the pod went out suddenly and the gravity returned to normal. Vegeta frowned and felt his way to where he knew the button to open the door was located. _I thought I told that old man to fix whatever was causing the pod to do this!_ Vegeta found the desired button and pressed it, releasing the door. _Why is Bul… that woman even back, already? She said she would be gone the whole day. She's only been gone for… Oh what does it matter? _Vegeta stomped across the yard to the house. _Five hours._

Vegeta stormed into the house and started heading towards Bulma's father's lab. He was just coming to the door when it opened and Bulma appeared in front of him. "Is something the matter, Vegeta?" she asked slyly.

"Woman! I don't have time for this! Where is your father?"

"He's out of the house." Bulma leaned against the doorframe and stared at Vegeta knowingly. "Is something wrong?"

"The power's out in the pod, again."

"Oh is it?" Bulma replied, picking at her nails. Vegeta easily picked up on her feigned surprise.

"What happened? Fix it now!"

"Why would I do that? All I did was shut the power to the pod off. I think I remember telling you to get back inside and this seemed to work perfectly."

"Damn you, woman! Why would you do this to me? Do you have any idea what you've done? My training's been set back and now I'm going to have to-"

"Stop." Bulma continued to lean against the doorframe with a satisfied, smug look on her face. "There's no way you're going to win this one, Vegeta. Get back in bed."

"You can't do this! I'm the prince of all Saiyans! I take orders from no one!" Bulma just stared at him with that same expression on her face. _This is so infuriating! Why does she just assume that I will listen to her? _

"Vegeta. Bed." Bulma pointed down the hall, her expression remaining smug.

"Gah!" Vegeta turned around and marched down the hall towards his room. _Why am I even doing what she says right now! She's just a weak human! There's something about her, though. How does Bulma never fail to distract me from what's really important?_ Vegeta opened the door to his room and frowned deeper at what he just thought. _Bulma… that damn, stupid, infuriating, conniving, meddling woman. At least she's better on the eyes than on the ears._

* * *

"_Make it a double!" Yamcha yelled to the bartender after he ordered his drink. He had just walked in to a bar he wasn't unfamiliar with. He had often come here after arguments with Bulma. This time seemed different, though. She had really done it this time. He picked up the drink as soon as it was set in front of him and drained it in one gulp. _That bitch! She can't talk to me that way! Who does she think she is anyway?_ He signaled the bartender for another drink and glared into his empty glass._

"_And I was like, 'you can't be serious!' And he was like, 'I'm more serious than you know.' And I was like 'Fine! We're through!'"_

"_Oh! He totally deserved it."_

"_I know!"_

_Yamcha looked to his left and saw two young blondes, maybe in their early 20's, super-attractive and sitting at the bar sipping martinis. He took a large gulp of his second drink when it was placed in front of him and looked away from the two. He kept stealing sideways looks at them from down the bar, though. _

_The two blondes sat at the bar for some time and Yamcha stayed in his seat, looking sideways and eavesdropping on their conversation. There wasn't much to listen to. They weren't making much sense to Yamcha, not to mention he had finished two more potent drinks and even though he wasn't drunk, his thoughts were a little fuzzy anyways._

_Yamcha finished the drink in his hand and set the empty glass on the bar. They are so hot… I'm gonna go talk to them. Wait, I can't do that. I'm with Bulma. But they are so hot… Yamcha turned on his stool; made sure his hair looked ok, brushed the peanut shells off his jacket, stood up, and walked down the bar to the two blondes._

"_Hello there." Yamcha turned on the charm as he came closer to them. The two blondes turned to him and after giving him a once-over, warmed up to his presence. "I was wondering if I could refresh your drinks for you." The pair looked at each other and giggled. The one on the right looked at Yamcha again and smiled flirtatiously and nodded. Yamcha smiled his winning smile at them. "Bartender! Two martinis for these two beauties, on me."_

_Yamcha stood by the blondes and stuck his hands in his pockets. "To what do I owe the honor of buying you two a drink when you have been refusing men that privilege all night?" The two looked surprised at his question, but giggled, again, after sharing a look. "I'm sorry. I hope that wasn't too rude. You caught my eye as soon as you walked in here, but I just couldn't get up the courage to come over here."_

"_I am so glad you did," the one on the right said. Yamcha smiled at them, again, and they blushed slightly._

_Yamcha flirted with both blondes, coming closer and closer to the one on the right. The blonde on the left seemed less interested in his advances. He first touched their arms closest to him, then brushed some hair off their cheek, ran his hand down their back. The right blonde seemed very receptive, but Yamcha didn't keep his hopes up. There was always a chance they were just leading him on._

_After a while, the pair got up, saying they needed to go to the restroom, and Yamcha waited. Both returned shortly and the left blonde politely said good-bye, thanked Yamcha for the drinks, and left in a cab. The one on the right sat down at the bar next to Yamcha and continued talking and flirting with Yamcha._

"_What's your name, anyway?" Yamcha asked as he fiddled with a wisp of blonde hair._

"_Jamie." This answer was followed by another giggle._

"_Well, Jamie," Yamcha whispered. "What do you say we get out of here?" Yamcha knew the answer would be yes. There were few people who could resist the 'Yamcha effect' when he tried to woo them._

"_Okay." A sly smile accompanied the response. "Do you have somewhere in mind to go?"_

_Yamcha picked up Jamie's hand and stroked it gently. "My apartment is not too far from here, unless you're totally against that."_

"_Actually, that's just what I had in mind." Yamcha burned with desire as he paid for the drinks and escorted Jamie out of the bar. They walked the three blocks to Yamcha's apartment building; Yamcha's hand going up and down Jamie's back, once slipping a little lower for a pinch, resulting in a giggle and more flirtatious banter._

_They took the elevator up to the twelfth floor, where Yamcha lived, being frisky in the empty elevator. Yamcha unlocked his apartment and showed Jamie in, flipping on the main light as he said, "I know it's not much, but…" _

_The sound of a lock sliding into place cut off his sentence and Jamie turned away from the door and walked towards him. "It's perfect."_

_Yamcha locked his mouth with Jamie's and any thoughts of Bulma disappeared as Yamcha's night was filled with a passion and satisfaction he hadn't felt in too long._

* * *

Yamcha shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts of his activities the night of his and Bulma's fight and stay focused on the road ahead. The burden of guilt had been laying heavily on him in the week since their fight and he was headed to Capsule Corp. to apologize and ask for forgiveness. Of course, he wouldn't tell her what happened after he'd left. There was no way she would ever forgive him for that, so he would have to just apologize for what he'd said to her and what he'd called her.

_She would never understand what I did. She wouldn't even understand how it's her fault! If she wasn't so stubborn, none of this would have happened._ Yamcha shook his head again to focus his thoughts. He wasn't going to blame her for anything; he was going to apologize for what he'd done wrong.

Yamcha pulled up to Capsule Corp. and parked his car on the road rather than on the driveway. If Bulma were to lose it again, he didn't want his car to bear the brunt of her anger. He walked up the long drive to the door and walked right in. It wasn't uncommon for him to do this. He came over to her house often enough. He even had a key, so it didn't really matter.

The living room was empty, but the TV had been left on. _Someone's here, at least._ Yamcha walked down the hall to Bulma's room and opened the door slightly. "Bulma?" There was no answer, so he shut the door to the nearly reconstructed room and moved towards Vegeta's room.

Yamcha did not at all want to check, but Bulma had made herself Vegeta's personal nurse for some reason, so it made the most sense to check there next. He cracked open the door to Vegeta's room as well and said, "Bulma?" into it. No response, again. He opened the door a little wider and was surprised to find Vegeta missing from the room as well. _He can't already be healed enough to get out of bed._

Since the other two rooms were empty, it meant that Bulma was either in the kitchen or the workshop and since the kitchen was closer, Yamcha headed there next. _I don't know why I think she would ever be attracted to Vegeta. I'm sure she's simply been trying to make me jealous the whole time._ He reached the place where he had listened in on Bulma and Vegeta before the explosion and froze.

"Oh wow, Vegeta. What a hunk of meat!" Bulma sounded really impressed. _What? No… it can't be._

"Woman! Just let me have it! Are you going to keep me waiting all day?" _Let him have what? What the hell is going on in there? _

"If you're so anxious, do it yourself!"

"But you're here and ready! Just take care of it." _ Oh god. This sounds awful. If I walk in now, I might see something I don't want to see… but if I don't something might happen that I don't want to happen! This can't be what I think it is. _

"I don't know if it will fit, Vegeta. It's almost two pounds."

"Damn it, woman! We'll make it fit! It's what I want."

"Ok, ok… let me just bend over here…"

"Hmph. It's about time you gave in."

"Well you know we'll need to prepare it first…" _No… surely not in the kitchen!_ "I think if we tenderize it, it should be ok."

_Wait… what?_ Yamcha turned the corner into the kitchen to see Bulma bending over in a cabinet with a meat hammer in her hand. Looking past her, he noticed Vegeta standing next to the stove with a large cut of raw beef in his left hand.

"What the hell do you want?" Vegeta asked as soon as he noticed him. Yamcha was still trying to get a grasp on what had just happened, and continued to stare at the unexpected scene he had just walked in on.

"Yamcha, what are you doing here?" Bulma stood up frowning with the hammer in hand and she placed her hands on her hips.

"I… you… Vegeta… meat in… do it…"

Somehow, Vegeta caught on to what Yamcha had been stuttering. "Oh please, don't make me vomit. You'll ruin this delicious dinner I'm about to have."

"What? What are you talking about Vegeta?" Yamcha continued to stare and gawk, absolutely helpless to prevent Vegeta from making a fool of him. _Bulma is going to blame me for this, again. 'Yamcha, why would you say I would do something like that!' If she didn't keep putting herself in these kinds of situations, I wouldn't think things like that!_

"Isn't it obvious? He apparently thought that I was about to screw you and felt the need to walk in and see for himself. But don't worry, Yamcha. I wouldn't even think of touching this woman willingly." Yamcha noticed a flit of hurt cross Bulma's face at Vegeta's words, but then she turned on him.

"Yamcha! What the hell were you thinking? You come to my home, uninvited and then insult me?"

"Insult you? I didn't even say anything!"

"Really? It seems that you said enough. Or is what Vegeta just said untrue?"

"Well… he… I… Now that's not really a fair question!"

"I thought so." Bulma crossed her arms and turned away from Yamcha. "You think that you can say anything you want and I'm not going to object! Well, I don't like being called a whore or a slut or stupid. I don't want you here, Yamcha, if insulting me is all you can do."

Yamcha was getting angry. She wasn't even giving him chance to explain! "Bulma… come on."

"Yamcha, is there no way you can take a hint? I feel like the one I just gave was pretty obvious."

_Hint? What the hell is she talking about?_ Vegeta smirked smugly at Yamcha as he explained. "She means that you need to get off her property before she blasts you."

"Thank you, Vegeta, for that astute observation. However, I feel that, as her boyfriend, I know her a little better than you."

"Actually, he's right, Yamcha." Yamcha looked in surprise at Bulma's interjection. "I want you to leave, now."

"So that's it, then? You're kicking me out, again?" Yamcha was furious, now. _She doesn't understand anything._ "I was coming to apologize, but apparently you don't even want to look at me let alone allow me to say that I've been a jerk and that even though I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, I want to ask for it anyway. But oh no, you don't want to hear that I'll swear to be a better man and to trust you, you just want to kick me out and never see me again. Well, you're getting your wish! I'm out of here!" Yamcha turned around and stormed out of the kitchen.

"Yamcha…" Yamcha just heard Bulma say. She sounded upset, sorry even. Vegeta was chuckling in the background. "What's so funny to you? You're just a loser with no money who is obsessed with becoming greater than someone you don't even have a chance at surpassing and all you can do is train like you think you can do it and just end up almost killing yourself because you can't even control yourself or the power that you're training against!" Vegeta just laughed coolly in response. "Augh… why me?"

Yamcha heard Bulma's tirade all the way down the driveway to his car. At least she's insulting Vegeta, now, and she did seem genuinely upset after what he had said to her. Yamcha was still upset. _Jamie said to call if I ever felt the need to. I think now might be that time._ As Yamcha climbed into his car, he pulled out his phone, punched in the number he had accidentally memorized that Jamie had written down for him that night, and pressed call.

"Hello?"

"Hey Jamie, its Yamcha."

"Oh, hey Yamcha." A giggle followed this statement. "How are you? I was beginning to think you weren't going to call."

"I was wondering if you wanted to go out tonight. I had some plans, but they fell through at the last moment."

* * *

_Who do those men think they are! Don't they know who they're dealing with? They can't talk about me that way!_ Bulma paced about her refurbished room, adamantly ranting to herself about the events that just unfolded. _Yamcha has some nerve coming back uninvited and without calling and then accusing me of the same thing that got him kicked out in the first place! But he did seem genuine about apologizing to me…_

Bulma thought about how Yamcha had been acting since Vegeta moved back in. He'd been becoming more and more distant. For being with Bulma, he wasn't with her very much. He had become more irritable, self-absorbed, and whiny and he blamed Bulma for anything that went wrong. _Why do I even put up with him anymore? He's making this relationship almost impossible. I was beginning to wonder if we were through before he showed up today. Are we through, now?_ That thought struck Bulma hard and she stopped her pacing suddenly. _It can't be. There would have been some sort of finality in his good-bye, right? _She started pacing, again.

_This is all Vegeta's fault! If he hadn't come back, Yamcha and I wouldn't have problems! He's such a demanding, chauvinistic pig! How can he treat me the way he does? Such a beautiful lady as me deserves to be treated like a princess, not like some whore on a street corner._

_Ugh! I can't stand this. Neither of those maddening men even comes close to treating me the way I should be treated! Yamcha can act like a gentleman, if he's got… something… on his mind. Opening the door for me is practically his way of saying 'I'm horny.' Vegeta doesn't ever do anything nice for me. Period. Yamcha can't take a hint, no matter how obvious it is; just like earlier today. Vegeta gets the hint, but ignores it like it's not worth his time to pursue._

_THEY BOTH SUCK! Why do I even bother with them? They don't appreciate me for anything. At least Vegeta's got a nice body and is really easy to look at… _Bulma stopped pacing once more and shook her head. _I guess I'll just have to suck it up and call Yamcha. If he meant what he said before, I owe him an apology, now._

Bulma walked to her desk and picked up the phone, dialing Yamcha's number. It rang a couple of times, and then switched over to his voicemail. This didn't surprise Bulma. She hadn't expected him to answer her call. "Hey Yamcha, it's me. I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry for earlier…"

* * *

Bulma leaned back against Yamcha as his favorite show played on the TV in her den at Capsule Corp. Yamcha had been getting almost everything he wanted recently; Bulma didn't want him to be angry with her again. It took three days for him to answer her calls after the last argument and almost a week for him to finally give in and come over. It was now two weeks after that and since Bulma really didn't want a repeat of that episode, she was giving Yamcha anything he wanted.

Bulma cuddled in closer to Yamcha, closed her eyes, and breathed in Yamcha's smell which she had missed. It was a little different, almost more… feminine? All the same, it was Yamcha. Bulma kissed his chest where her head rested and ran her hand across his torso suggestively. Yamcha did suck at taking hints, but hopefully her silent cry of 'I want to have sex with you!' would come through.

Yamcha had his arm across the back of the couch and Bulma noticed him glance at his watch six or seven times in the last fifteen minutes of the show. His leg started bouncing and Bulma could tell that his attention was not on the TV, let alone her actions.

Bulma smirked and nudged Yamcha. "What's wrong, Yamcha? Got a date?"

Yamcha jumped and looked utterly bewildered before he realized Bulma was joking. "Ah… well… of course not! I uh… I'm… umm… meeting Tien… yeah! I'm meeting Tien and we're going to spar… you know… to try to judge how our training is going and, um… catch up. We are rivals, you know."

"Really? Well, cool. Can I come?"

"No!" Yamcha said this a little too quickly and looked scared of her suggestion. His expression cleared. "No you can't. It's just going to be me and him."

"Well, why can't I come? Tien's my friend, too."

"Well, this could be dangerous, anyway. That's no place for someone like you."

Bulma stopped and narrowed her eyes. "Dangerous? Namek was dangerous! Frieza was dangerous! I was okay with those things, so how could this be any more dangerous?"

"Why can't I just get a moment to myself without you trying to butt into every part of my life?"

"I just want to spend time with you, Yamcha! I've missed being with you."

"Well, sometimes I just need room to breathe, okay? Don't smother me."

"Smother you? How could I smother you? I'm barely with you, anymore!"

Yamcha stood up and turned to face Bulma. "I don't have to deal with this, anymore. I'm sick of you and how you're acting. Bulma, we're through." Bulma sat in the sofa confused by what she just heard. Yamcha turned his back to her and walked toward the door and Bulma just barely heard him say under his breath, "I've got something better waiting, anyway."

* * *

Vegeta closed the door as quietly as he could. Bulma had been very upset the past couple of days, to say the least. He couldn't stay inside Capsule Corp. without hearing her wailing at the top of her lungs. From what he could understand, Yamcha had left her. _I'm surprised he didn't do it sooner. The woman's a nightmare._ However, through all of the screaming and crying, Vegeta couldn't help but feel in somewhat of a better mood since Yamcha had left.

Trying to be as silent as possible, Vegeta made his way to the kitchen to grab something to eat. The house was currently noiseless, and he didn't want to attract the attention of anyone, and especially not Bulma. Vegeta ate what he could, which, considering he didn't have anyone to cook for him, wasn't nearly as much as he wanted. Vegeta frowned as he ate the last bites of his relatively meager meal for a Saiyan and headed from the kitchen to his room.

Vegeta rounded the corner to the hall his room was on and he jumped slightly as Bulma bumped into him from the opposite direction. She was wearing the same sweat pants and tight t-shirt she'd been wearing the past couple of days and her hair was pulled back instead of well tended as it normally was.

"Watch where you're going!" she managed after overcoming her surprise at his appearance. Her arms were crossed across her chest and her head was bowed, trying to hide the tears that were still in her eyes. Vegeta just stared, puzzled, at the woman in front of him. He hadn't been this close to her in a few days, and he had never seen her look so beat.

"Move!" She yelled a little louder and tried pushing Vegeta and hitting his chest with her fists while shouting "Move!" repeatedly. Vegeta stood still, bewildered by her actions and confused as to why she didn't just go around him. After a minute of this behavior, Bulma collapsed against Vegeta, clutching at his shirt and sobbing desperately into his chest.

Vegeta didn't know what to do. He felt sorry for her, but didn't know why. _I could comfort her, but why? It's not like I actually care that she's upset…_ _I wish she would just move. _ Vegeta placed his hands on Bulma's forearms and readied himself to push her away from him, but as he looked down on her, helpless, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

She was really close to him. Bulma's chest was pressed against his and Vegeta could feel her ragged breathing. Bulma was _really_ close to him. He had never been this close to anyone before. He could smell her hair; the scent she left behind when she walked past. Her skin was soft. He had never been this close to someone so… beautiful. Vegeta's breathing increased.

Bulma looked up at Vegeta, tears still in her eyes. Vegeta looked down at her stunning face and couldn't contain himself. Leaning forward, his lips met hers in a passionate kiss.

* * *

Bulma lay in her bed, her comforter covering her naked body and watched Vegeta as he sat on the edge, frowning at the floor. Suddenly, Vegeta stood up and started redressing. Bulma's eyes widened at his actions. What was he doing?

"Vegeta, where are you going?" Vegeta had just pulled his shirt over his head as she asked and he froze for a moment as if to contemplate the answer. Bulma's heart beat frantically as she searched for some sort of affection or affirmation of pleasure from Vegeta.

"I have to go train." Without another word Vegeta left the room and slammed the door a little too roughly.

Bulma's frantic heart skipped a beat and tears came to her eyes as she realized her fear: she had been used. Bulma wiped the tears away and rubbed her eyes. How did this happen? She'd been devastated since Yamcha left and she can't remember much since he had dumped her. _At what point did I get so desperate to sleep with Vegeta?_

Bulma tried to remember exactly what happened before. She had finally stopped crying uncontrollably earlier that day and was going to wander around the first floor garden when she had run straight into Vegeta. She hadn't wanted to see anyone, let alone someone who made her so mad all the time. Bulma had been so angry and frustrated she didn't think about what she was doing.

What had she said to him? _'Watch where you're going!'_ She'd started crying a bit again at this point, but tried to hide it from Vegeta. He hadn't moved and she just yelled at him and tried to make him move. _In hindsight, I could have just walked around him._ Bulma sighed. She wasn't proud that such a stupid thing had led her to this situation.

The frustration had kept building in Bulma and she had started crying full-out again. She had fallen against Vegeta and tried not to fall to the ground. Bulma had been very surprised at Vegeta's reaction. She had expected him to push her away immediately and let her fall to the floor and cry. Bulma could have sworn he was going to when he had grabbed her arms. But, what started out as a tight hold loosened to an easy grip and his thumbs had rubbed against her wrists.

_Why didn't he push me away? I guess what followed answers that question._ Bulma had felt his heart rate quicken ever so slightly as she leaned against him and his breathing increased as well. She had looked up at him, scared he was about to get angry and throw her through a wall, but what Bulma saw was his face staring at her with a mixed expression of confusion and lust and, before Bulma could register what was happening, Vegeta had leaned in and kissed her.

Bulma had been too shocked at first to pull away, but as Vegeta continued to kiss her, she couldn't stop; she couldn't get enough. Vegeta had wrapped his muscular arms around her and pulled her closer, but hadn't squeezed her too hard as Yamcha sometimes had.

Vegeta became more passionate and moved Bulma against the wall in the hallway, moving his left hand up her back to her hair, loosing it and letting it fall down her back, and his right hand down her back. Bulma's mind raced as Vegeta's lips worked against hers and his hands wandered up and down her back. _Why am I doing this? What would Yamcha say? Why do I care what he thinks? I hope my parents don't come home any time soon._

Bulma arched her back as Vegeta's right hand wandered up and down and Vegeta let out a low grunt as her action pushed her body closer into his. Bulma wound her fingers in Vegeta's dark black hair and her mind, racing with questions of her actions, froze as both of Vegeta's hands went under her backside and pulled her up. Instinctively, Bulma wrapped her legs around Vegeta's waist and she pulled away from his mouth and gently bit his earlobe.

Vegeta walked slowly down the hall, now grasping Bulma's shirt, coming to the door to Bulma's room. Vegeta leaned Bulma against it, but still gripped her shirt tightly. Bulma untangled one of her hands and reached down and turned the knob. The door swung open suddenly and Vegeta stumbled forward at this unexpected change. Vegeta regained his balance long enough to stagger to Bulma's bed and sit on the edge.

Bulma reached down and started pulling Vegeta's shirt up, letting go of his ear just long enough to drag it over his head. Her heart raced as Vegeta tilted his head and kissed her neck, working his hands to her shirt and pulling it up slowly. Bulma shivered as Vegeta ran his fingers gently over her bare skin and then completely removed her shirt leaving her bra exposed.

Vegeta kicked off his shoes, stood up with Bulma still wrapped around him, turned to face the bed, and lightly threw Bulma on it. Bulma watched him as he came in closer, passion alight in his eyes. Vegeta leaned over her on the bed and Bulma's last thought was just how much she wanted him at this moment.

Bulma snapped back to the present and shook her head. She rubbed her eyes with her fingers and tried to think straight. Vegeta was good, _really_ good. The sensations that had wracked her body were more than she had ever felt before. But now he was gone: gone to train. _Why? Why did he have to leave so fast? Why did he use me? It's my own fault. I can't believe I let this happen._

Bulma's thoughts wandered to Yamcha and her heart sank. What was he doing now? Did he miss her as much as she missed him? Had he done this, too? She still loved him. They loved each other. They could get past this!

Pulling the sheets back, Bulma stood up and dressed quickly in a pair of jean shorts and a tank. _I have to go see him. If he's hurting, I want to make him feel better. Maybe I can forget this fling with Vegeta. Yamcha doesn't have to know._

Running down the hall and to the driveway, Bulma pulled out the capsule for her air bike. She looked towards the Capsule Pod, expecting to see it sealed for Vegeta's training, but, surprisingly, it was empty. Pulling her thoughts back to where she was going, Bulma threw the capsule and climbed on her bike as it appeared. She sped into the night taking the well-known route to Yamcha's apartment building.

Bulma rounded the last block and jumped off the bike, retracting it into its capsule. Bulma ran to the door and groaned in frustration as she realized the apartment's entrance was locked. She was about to buzz Yamcha's apartment, when someone came up behind her and opened the door. Bulma slipped in behind thankful that Yamcha didn't have the option of denying her entrance until she arrived at his door. _He wouldn't do that, though. We are supposed to be together. He has to know that by now!_

Bulma pressed the elevator call button and waited as it descended ten floors to the ground level, pressing the button several more times willing it to arrive faster. Bulma was frantic, now. She had to see Yamcha. She had to apologize. She needed things to be right.

The elevator ascended to the twelfth floor and stopped, letting Bulma out. She ran down the hall to Yamcha's door and stood for a moment, steadying her breath and collecting herself before knocking. Bulma's pounding heart skipped a beat as she heard the locks on the door move and the knob turn.

What met Bulma's gaze was not what she had expected. A man, slightly taller than herself, with blonde hair and a pretty face answered the door wearing shorts and one of Yamcha's t-shirts. Bulma stared, confused. _Who the hell is this?_

The man who opened the door turned his head and called over his shoulder, "Never mind! It's some random woman!" He turned back to face Bulma and looked her over. "So, can I help you?" His voice was high-pitched with a slight lisp and Bulma just knew this guy had to be gay.

"I was looking for Yamcha." The man cocked an eyebrow and leaned against the doorframe.

"May I ask who you are?"

"I-I'm Bulma…" Bulma tried looking over the man's shoulder to see into the apartment, but he was just tall enough and leaning just right that she couldn't see anything but the hall right inside the door.

From inside the apartment, Bulma heard someone call, "Jamie!"

Jamie continued looking at Bulma. "Bulma, huh? Oh, yes. I've heard about _you_." His emphasis on the word 'you' gave Bulma the chills.

"W-what? Who are you? Where's Yamcha?"

"Jamie, honey. Who is it?" The familiar voice was coming down the hall. A hand appeared on Jamie's arm and the half-closed door opened to reveal Yamcha, shirtless standing behind. Yamcha's eyes widened and he laughed nervously. "Oh… hi, Bulma."

Jamie looked at Yamcha, annoyed. "I thought you said the two of you were finished."

"We are! I have no idea why she's here."

"Yamcha," Bulma started. "Who is this?"

"This? Oh, Jamie! Yeah, he's… uh, he's my… my roommate."

"Yamcha!" Jamie looked hurt. "Really? Your roommate?" Jamie turned to Bulma and said seriously, "I'm his boyfriend."

Bulma's mind crashed to a halt. Boyfriend? Yamcha was gay? That can't be right. They had been together for years. "How long?" Jamie just cocked his eyebrow again. Rage started building inside Bulma as she clarified, "How long have you been together."

Yamcha's face became terrified as Jamie answered, "A month." _A month? Since that first big fight? He been… oh god… he's been cheating on me! For a month!_ Bulma couldn't hold back the bubbling rage at this revelation.

"YOU BASTARD! HOW COULD YOU? YOU'RE SUCH A F**ING HYPOCRITE! WITH A MAN?" Bulma clenched her fists and glared at Yamcha's petrified expression. Mustering all the strength she could she pulled her right arm back and slapped Yamcha as hard as she could. Immediately her hand exploded in pain. She glanced up at Yamcha to try to satisfy herself with a bruise or handprint, but there was nothing. Yamcha didn't even seem to feel it and stood there with his mouth open. Holding her right wrist with her left hand she glared at Yamcha again and screamed, "I F**ING HATE YOU! GO TO HELL!" And with that, Bulma ran down the hall as tears began to flow once more down her cheeks. _I never want to see you again, Yamcha. I hate you!_

* * *

Boom! The cliff in front of Vegeta disintegrated as an energy wave blasted through it. Vegeta's mind was clear, focused on his training. He had left Capsule Corp. and headed to the same desert he had been at after Frieza had arrived on earth. He ducked and rolled, feeling more powerful from the high-gravity training. _This is almost too easy._ Vegeta smirked at that. _It just means that I need to train harder!_

Running as fast as he could, Vegeta somersaulted and turned and shot a bigger beam than he'd ever dared to shoot at the mountain looming to his right. The beam shook the ground and as the light from it subsided, the mountain was no longer standing.

Vegeta fell back, sweaty and exhausted. He hadn't been training for long, but he had already worn himself out in the Capsule Pod earlier. He sat with his elbows on his knees catching his breath as the truth he had been training to avoid thinking about hit him head-on. He had slept with Bulma.

What had caused him to act the way he did? Sure, she was beautiful. Yes, she was desperate at the time. _That's not it… There something more. I can't understand it. _Vegeta screamed in frustration. The desert echoed his sentiments for several seconds before dying away. _This isn't what's important! What's important is getting stronger than Kakarot!_

Shutting his eyes tight and taking a deep breath, Vegeta heaved himself on and kept training, pushing harder than before to avoid thoughts of the infuriating, stupid, beautiful, addictive Bulma.

* * *

Vegeta landed softly in the backyard of Capsule Corp. His clothes were shredded and he was physically and mentally exhausted. He had trained harder than ever, taking only short breaks to sleep and eat. Those breaks, however, cost him a clear mind and allowed his thoughts to wander to a certain woman with blue hair he had left four days ago.

Vegeta stumbled up to the sliding glass door and pushed it open, entering the kitchen. He could hear the television on in the background. "Dad, is that you?" Bulma's called from the living room. Vegeta's eyes widened at her voice. He had hoped she wouldn't be home. He didn't know how he would handle seeing her again so soon. _ Why did I even come back here? I could have stayed away and trained. I didn't have to return._

Vegeta started to walk back out the door when Bulma walked through the door to the kitchen and spotted him. "Vegeta!" She was genuinely surprised and sounded almost relieved. "Oh my god, where have you been? Do you realize you've been missing for four days? Why didn't you tell anyone where you were going? How would we find you if you were seriously hurt?" Vegeta stiffened as she approached him.

"You look beat." She rested her hand on his arm. "Whew… and you smell. Okay, you are taking a shower and going to sleep." Bulma grabbed his arm and Vegeta allowed himself to be pulled out of the kitchen and down the hall to the bathroom.

_Why is she doing this? She's acting so normal! Why the hell did I ever come back here? She's just a distraction from what I'm really striving for!_ Bulma pushed him into the bathroom. "You go ahead and get in and I'll bring you a change of clothes." Vegeta was about to object, but Bulma cut him off. "Don't worry. It's not going make you look like, what did you say, 'A variety of flower.'" Vegeta frowned, but stayed silent. Bulma giggled and turned and left Vegeta alone.

Showering quickly, Vegeta changed into the clothes Bulma had brought him and was quite relieved to see a more normal Saiyan staring back in the mirror. _As normal as a warrior species could be without armor, _Vegeta thought bitterly. He frowned, turned away from the mirror, and walked out of the bathroom.

As soon as he appeared in the hallway, Bulma assaulted him, pushing him as hard as she could in the direction of his room. Her progress was non-existent. "You are exhausted, Vegeta! You are going to bed."

Vegeta, caught off-guard by Bulma, crossed his arms and glared down at the woman pushing him so hard he could hardly feel it. "I don't take orders from anyone, let alone a woman!"

"Oh, really? You take orders from this woman. Now, go!" Vegeta huffed and stepped backwards towards his room, causing Bulma to fall forward and land hard on the floor.

"You jerk! You can't treat someone as beautiful as me like that!" Vegeta smiled slightly at the sound of the fall and her furious objection and entered his room. _Ha! Serves her right._

After Vegeta closed the door behind him, muffling the sound of a still-yelling Bulma in the hall, and he let the full feeling of exhaustion wash over him. He stumbled over to his bed and fell onto it, falling asleep to the sound of a drill from Bulma's room across the hall.

Vegeta's eyes shot open suddenly. He sat straight up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He had woken up for something… Vegeta took a deep breath and felt his stomach roll hungrily. The scent of cooked steak wafted through the air and Vegeta remembered how hungry he actually was. Standing, he ran his hands over his face, brushing the sleep out of his eyes.

The door squeaked lightly as Vegeta opened it and walked into the hall, following the tempting smell of food. He arrived at the kitchen quickly and saw Bulma flipping a steak on their inside grill while three other pots covered the stovetop. Vegeta entered silently and sat on a bar stool at the island in the center of the kitchen.

Without turning around, Bulma addressed him. "Were you just waiting for the perfect time to speak so that I would scream and drop what I was holding for your amusement?"

"The complete opposite, actually. If you think that I wanted to ruin a perfect good meal by playing a joke, you must be thicker than I first thought."

Bulma whipped around to glare at Vegeta and put her hands on her hips. "I don't have to give any of this to you, you know!" Vegeta smirked and turned around on the stool showing his back to Bulma. He could feel her roll her eyes at him and she continued cooking.

_I hadn't rested that long in days. How long was I out? Surely it couldn't have been more than a couple of hours. The sun's already starting to set…_ a chink of glass on granite drew Vegeta's attention back to the kitchen. He turned and saw a large plate of steak, potatoes, greens, a whole bowl of rice, and a large bowl of noodle soup sitting on the island in front of him.

"Eat up, Vegeta. I wouldn't want it to go to waste." Vegeta did not need to be told twice. _Does she really think this constitutes a meal? There's hardly enough here to feed a baby, let alone…_

"Don't worry, silly." Vegeta looked up, frowning. _Silly? No one calls me silly!_ Bulma was smiling at him, knowingly. "There's more food where that came from. I've know Goku too long to let a Saiyan sit down for only a couple plates of food." Vegeta's frown deepened, but his worries about food eased.

Vegeta ate silently and Bulma refilled any part of the meal that emptied as he did. "… but my dad said that he thought I could fix it and I just really didn't know for sure, so I tried and guess what! It worked! It didn't seem like…" Bulma kept chatting and Vegeta tuned her out and watched her as she walked around the kitchen cleaning and refilling his plate.

"… so I went to the next store and tried these same pair of shorts on and they were half the price. I thought they might be a little different, but they weren't. That other store…" Bulma was wearing shorts and a red, deep v-neck halter top and her hair, thankfully, had lost its volume and was now pulled back into a loose bun. Vegeta stared her legs up and down as she turned her back to him to stir something on the stove, but quickly diverted his eyes as she turned towards him, once again to fill his soup bowl.

Unfortunately, Bulma had decided to lean over the island to fill the bowl. While she skillfully filled it without spilling anything, Vegeta, to his pleasure and misfortune, caught a beautiful view down Bulma's shirt. He gripped his chopsticks as she did this and they shattered before his fist fully closed.

Bulma noticed this. "Is something the matter, Vegeta?" Vegeta's eyes snapped up and saw Bulma smiling lightly.

Vegeta furrowed his eyebrows and looked down at the wooden shards in his hand. "Just these lousy sticks. I hardly even touch them and they break. You're lucky I didn't get a splinter!"

"Don't be such a baby, Vegeta. I'll get you another pair." Bulma reached into a nearby drawer and handed Vegeta a new set of chopsticks.

Silence settled in the kitchen; Bulma was staring at Vegeta inquiringly. Vegeta focused deliberately on his food, but felt Bulma's eyes on him as he at the last of his meal. _Why is she staring at me like that? I feel like she's waiting for me to do something… or maybe she knows something's going to happen. Did she poison the food? She probably thought that since I didn't stay after we… well, since I didn't stay she thinks that I don't like her at all. Which I don't…_ Bulma started picking her fingernails and Vegeta looked appreciatively at her figure. _…Maybe a small amount._

The chopsticks clicked against the plate as Vegeta finally set them down. Bulma silently cleared the counter, continuing to exude an expectant air. Vegeta watched her as she busied herself with some cleaning, focusing specifically on her legs, backside, and breasts. Trying to sound nonchalant, Vegeta asked, "Bulma, are your parents home?"

Bulma turned and faced him, her expression showing that she finally heard what she had been expecting since he walked in the kitchen. "Well, my dad said he would be in the lab for the rest of the day and my mom's out shopping. Any particular reason?"

Vegeta exhaled out of his nose. "I just had a question about the Capsule Pod."

Bulma arched an eyebrow and smirked. "Right…" Vegeta immediately noticed a difference in Bulma's actions. They were deliberately screaming for him to stare at her in the most inappropriate way. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. Bulma eventually bent over and her short shorts rode up and exposed even more of her leg and backside. This was too much for what he could handle of her and he inadvertently groaned.

Bulma peeked around her leg and looked up at Vegeta. "Is something wrong, Vegeta?"

The countertop yielded easily as Vegeta's fingers gripped it, trying to control himself. _What is going on? Why is this so difficult? She is a stupid woman who just wants to use me for whatever reason…_

"Vegeta?" Bulma stood up and faced him.

"I'm fine… It's just a back cramp." This was partially true, but Vegeta knew that they both knew what was going on.

"Do you want me to rub it for you?" Before he could answer, she sauntered over to Vegeta and started massaging his stiff back muscles. After a minute, Bulma leaned against his back. Vegeta could feel her breasts pressing against him. Bulma leaned in closer until her lips were less than an inch from his ear and he could feel her breathing and the warmth of her breath. She snaked her hands down Vegeta's arms and around his torso, lightly touching every muscle. "You're so tense," she whispered sensually. "Just try to relax."

A slight chill on Vegeta's earlobe from Bulma's tongue running against it was all it took to send him over the edge. "Damn it, woman!" was all Vegeta managed to say before he spun around on the stool and pulled Bulma in for another passionate kiss.

* * *

The sound of steady breathing filled the silence in Bulma's room as Vegeta slept soundly next to her on her bed. Bulma lay on her side staring at the resting man. The last time she had seen him sleep was after the explosion of the pod. _He's changed since then, in some respects. He may still be a prick, but at least he's interested in me… right?_

This time with Vegeta was different from the last time. He had left without a word, disappearing for four days and leaving Bulma in a pit of depression and self-pity, not to mention finding out about Yamcha. Why had she done this again? _I'm desperate. That's the only explanation I can think of. I practically threw myself at him and screamed "DO ME!"_ Bulma leaned back against her pillow and put both hands over her face. _I'm still not completely over Yamcha._

Bulma rubbed her eyes with her fingers and sat up on the edge of the bed staring at the floor; much like Vegeta had done four days ago. She stood and slowly started dressing herself. _Of all the men within fifty miles of West City, why did this have to happen with Vegeta? He's rude, conceited, pushy, dangerously unpredictable… Why am I so drawn to him?_

Bulma walked toward the door while finishing tying the strap to her halter-top around her neck. She placed her hand on the doorknob and turned to look back at Vegeta, still sleeping peacefully on her bed. _It's just a rebound. I know it is. _He _probably knows it is and is taking advantage of it. It's never going to last._ Though logic brought her to this conclusion, Bulma couldn't help but feel hurt by this outcome.

The whistle of a teapot reached Bulma's ears as she reached the end of the hall and she froze. _There's someone in the kitchen! Is my mom home already? What if she heard us? I didn't think anyone was home or I wouldn't have… Maybe she just got here. How am I going to play this off?_

Rounding the corner into the kitchen, Bulma met her mother standing on a chair searching through one of the cabinets. Mrs. Briefs looked over her shoulder. "Oh hello, Bulma. I thought you were here. I just got back from the mall and just have the biggest craving for some chamomile tea." Bulma started at this line. Nothing about 'I heard strange noises.' or even 'Didn't you hear me come home.' and thankfully not 'Did you forget to brush your hair this morning? It's a bit of a mess.'

"Mom, the tea is in the bottom right cabinet." Mrs. Briefs looked confused for a moment and then giggled, climbing off the chair.

"Oh! You're right honey. I just completely forgot. You'd think with how long I've lived here I would start to remember some things." Bulma sighed and massaged her temple with her fingers. Bulma's mother pulled a few tea bags from the cabinet and placed two bags in separate cups, filling them with water from the whistling pot. She handed Bulma one and Bulma accepted it absently. For once, Bulma hoped her mother was a stupid as she acted and really didn't notice anything.

Bulma took a sip from the cup her mother had handed her and recoiled at the taste. She didn't even like chamomile tea. She set the cup down and leaned against a counter watching her mother buzz around the kitchen seeming to do nothing in particular. "Where's Yamcha, dear?" The sound of his name made Bulma's face heat and her heart to speed off at a rate she wasn't used to. Whether this was anger or residual affection, Bulma couldn't tell. "I haven't seen him around, recently."

"Mom! I told you already. We broke up."

"Oh, that's right. I remember you saying something, now. What a pity. He really was quite a handsome boy." Bulma held back the tears of hurt threatening to spill. She hadn't told her parents the whole story and she certainly wasn't about to. It was just supposed to seem like she didn't care about him anymore. Crying about it would not give that impression.

Mrs. Briefs didn't seem to notice Bulma's reactions to what she had said and continued searching cabinets and relocating assorted boxes of food. "Hmm… I haven't seen Vegeta around here either. Do you know where he's gone?" The sound of this name incited the same reaction as Yamcha's name. Still, it being from anger or affection was unclear.

Trying to maintain a steady voice was near impossible. "He went off to train. He's… he just got back this morning."

"Oh that's just so wonderful. Where is he now?"

Bulma gulped. _I was really hoping she wouldn't ask that._ "Asleep…"

"Dear me. I am sure he's exhausted right now. I don't know how long he's been gone but I'm sure he's been working hard this whole time. Vegeta's such a hard worker, Bulma, and he isn't too bad to look at, either. That's great husband material, you know."

"Mom!" Bulma blushed even deeper and turned her back to her mother, hoping to hide her embarrassment. _That's my cue to leave._ "I'm going to check to see if Dad needs any help."

"Okay, honey. Bring this to your father." Mrs. Briefs handed Bulma another cup of tea and Bulma rolled her eyes, setting the cup on the counter next to her own. Her father disliked chamomile tea, too. Exiting the room, Bulma exhaled shakily. She really was fortunate to have such a slow mother.

Bulma headed to her father's workshop passed the hall with her and Vegeta's rooms down it to see Vegeta, shirtless, standing in her doorway with his arms on either side of the door frame, staring at the floor of the hall blankly: he looked lost. Bulma gasped in surprise and her stomach turned and Vegeta's eyes darted to her in almost equal surprise. Vegeta frowned and stood up straight, then silently walked across the hall into his room.

_Why on earth am I acting like this? It's not like I'm in love with Vegeta or anything. It's just a stupid rebound. He doesn't even like me. Just look at the way he glared at me just then. Well… it wasn't exactly a glare. But, really. Why would he like me? _Bulma's mind kept spinning around this subject giving her a headache.

Clicks from fingers tapping methodically on a keyboard were the only sounds from the lab as Bulma let herself in. She saw what she expected: her father editing some electronic schematic of a broken device lying on a lab table along the opposite wall.

"Do you need any help, Dad?" Dr. Briefs jumped and nearly fell off his chair as Bulma spoke. He faced Bulma regained his bearings slowly.

"Oh, Bulma. You frightened me. Hmm… well. No. There's nothing much to work on at the moment. I'm just redesigning the training equipment that Vegeta asked for."

"You're redesigning it again? Did you finally find a way to make it too hard for that arrogant prick?" Bulma crossed her arms and smirked. The thought of Vegeta needed to ask for something easier was almost too satisfying.

Unfortunately, Bulma's satisfaction didn't last. "No, Bulma. This is the third robot he's destroyed in the last week and considering that has been a good sign that he's surpassed the power of the robots in the past, I think it's time for an upgrade. Not to mention Vegeta came to me several days ago threatening my life if I wouldn't repair his training equipment."

"What? He can't do that. He's a guest! You don't have to do anything for him, Dad."

"It's alright. I'm almost finished anyway."

"Dad, why are you doing this for Vegeta?"

"Well… there's something about him that I like. He challenges me and that is something that I can appreciate."

Bulma stared at her father for a moment in disbelief. _How can anyone say that they like anything about Vegeta? He's such a… he's so… _"Errrr!" Her outburst caused her father to jump and look over at her again.

"Is everything alright, Bulma?"

"I'm fine." Bulma stormed out of the workshop with her hands on her head in aggravation. _I don't see how anyone could say anything nice about Vegeta, but I can't think of anything negative. _ A frustrated tear rolled down Bulma's cheek as she realized there may be something about Vegeta she liked, too, but she couldn't say what.

* * *

"Why do I have to be dragged to a stupid party? I need to be training!" A frowning Vegeta was pushed into the house by Bulma. She had cut the power to the Capsule pod once more and Vegeta was none too happy about her reasons.

"Well, I can't very well go to a party without a date, can I?"

"A date?" Vegeta smirked and stopped allowing Bulma to push him through the living room. She stopped trying and stared at him. "Couldn't you just bring Yamcha?"

Bulma's stare turned deadly at the mention of Yamcha's name. "He's going to be there, probably with that whore, Jamie. I need to show that bastard that I'm better off without him!"

Vegeta laughed roughly at her statement. "You can't be serious. What is dragging me to a party going to prove to anyone? There is no way I am going."

"You're going and that's final!" Bulma yelled.

Vegeta frowned and turned away from her. "Fine, but only as long as you don't make me wear something ridiculous." Bulma gave a satisfied smile and nodded. Vegeta followed her to her room and Bulma handed him a pile of clothes already prepared for him. She gave Vegeta one last smug look and closed the door behind him.

_Why the hell did I allow myself to get dragged into this? I am a prince! I shouldn't be taking orders from anyone, but here I am about to wear… Oh god. What the hell is this?_ Against his better judgment, Vegeta put on the clothes Bulma had handed him and his frown deepened every second.

Bulma emerged from her room ten minutes later and Vegeta's eyes widened in surprise. "What kind of party is this?" Vegeta exclaimed as he eyed Bulma. All she was wearing were black high-heels, black fish-net hose, a black leotard with a tail, and a pair of bunny ears.

"It's a costume party, Vegeta. Didn't I mention that before?" Bulma's eyes brightened as if she had just remembered something and she entered her room and started rummaging around looking for something.

"Costumes? Then what the hell am I dressed as?" Bulma reappeared holding a yellow hard hat and handed it to Vegeta.

"I almost forgot the finishing touch. You're a construction worker!"

Vegeta looked down in disbelief at his short, tight, jean shorts, tight v-neck, sleeveless shirt, and work boots. "What kind of construction worker wears this?"

"A _sexy_ construction worker. You have to know how nice that shirt makes your abs stand out."

"I am not going anywhere in this!" Vegeta looked Bulma over once more. _And there's no way I'm allowing you out wearing that._

"Awww… why not? You look great."

"I don't want anyone looking at you… ME!" Vegeta stood still and mentally kicked himself for that obvious slip.

Looking sideways at him, Bulma smirked at him the same way she always did when she knew she was going to win an argument. "So you're worried about me? Why would _you_, Your Highness, be so concerned about little old me?"

"That's not what I said…" Bulma cocked an eyebrow. "That's not what I meant!" Bulma just continued to smirk and Vegeta stumbled into silence.

"Right… well, then. You don't have to go if you don't want to, Vegeta. I'm going no matter what, so if you really don't care, I guess you can just stay here." And with that, Bulma walked down the hall and outside to her car.

Vegeta didn't move as she left, but eyed her retreat with regrettable pleasure. _Damn it! What the hell am I doing? Why does she have to dress like that? _I_ can hardly keep my hands off of her._ With a furious and helpless growl, Vegeta followed Bulma's path down the hall and to her car where she waited with that same infuriating smirk.

They drove in silence to the party which was in downtown West City. As they arrived and parked, Vegeta noticed Bulma breathing harder and gripping the wheel tighter than usual. Vegeta climbed out of the car and waited for Bulma. "Don't forget your hat, Vegeta."

Bulma came around the car with the yellow hard hat and placed it on top of Vegeta's head. Vegeta's hair stopped the hat from actually fitting his head correctly. But no matter how hard Bulma tried, Vegeta's hair would not yield. "Why don't I just carry it?" he said after a minute.

Bulma just nodded and wrung her hands as she stared at the building they were about to enter. She was taking deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. _This behavior is because of that idiot weakling, Yamcha? Bulma must not be as strong as I had thought._ They walked through the door and took the elevator up to the correct floor. "I could have flown us up in half the time."

"Huh? Oh." Bulma stopped staring at the doors and answered Vegeta. "These people don't really know about flying and being super-strong or anything." Vegeta just exhaled out of his nose once and stayed silent as they walked up to the door.

Bulma knocked and an attractive young woman dressed in a plaid miniskirt, a very open white blouse, and high black socks answered the door. "Bulma! Oh, it's so great to see you. I thought you weren't coming, but please, come in! Who's your friend?"

"This is Vegeta. He's staying with my family for the time being. He's an expert martial-artist."

"Oooh, like Yamcha? Hi Vegeta, I'm Marcy." Marcy held out her hand, but Vegeta just frowned and nodded curtly.

"Okay… Bulma! It's been too long. I can't wait to show everyone how great you look." Marcy then lowered her voice and whispered something to Bulma that Vegeta couldn't hear.

Bulma blushed slightly at her words and Marcy sported a mischievous grin as Bulma said, "Well, No… Uh… It's not like that." Marcy laughed and she and Bulma walked further into the party leaving Vegeta behind.

"Yamcha arrived about five minutes ago. I thought he was going to be with you but he said…" and her voice faded into the crowd as they walked away.

Vegeta maintained his usual posture with his arms crossed across his chest and a frown across his face, giving off an almost visible negative aura which made everyone around leave a four foot radius around him. He stared out of the window, fuming to himself. _How did I allow myself to get dragged into this? Why did she have to go and wear that sorry excuse for an outfit? This is such a waste of time. I need to be training!_

A laugh from across the room drew Vegeta's attention. On the far corner of the room he spotted Yamcha who looked furious; the chatting woman at his side seemed unfazed by Yamcha's obvious disregard for her. Yamcha's gaze was glued to another corner of the room. Following his line of sight, Vegeta found Bulma, surrounded by five men and her friend, Marcy, glancing sideways at him, and noticing his attention, she smiled and winked.

The number of men with Bulma increased to seven as Vegeta watched and he felt a twinge of jealousy. _Why do I even care about this? She can do what she wants! It has no bearing on me._ Vegeta turned half away, but he made sure he could keep an eye on her.

"Why the long face, Vegeta?" Vegeta moved his eyes to acknowledge the appearance of Marcy by his side. "You don't look like you're having much fun."

"How can anyone expect to have fun when they're dressed so ridiculously?" Marcy laughed and moved closer to Vegeta.

"Why did you come if you didn't like costume parties?" Vegeta grunted in response, keeping his eyes on the other side of the room on Bulma and Marcy smirked and moved so she stood facing Vegeta, trying to get his full attention. "Well, surely I could do something to make this a little more enjoyable for you." She reached out her hand and touched Vegeta's muscular arm and rubbed her neck, pulling her blouse a little further open revealing a black bra mostly visible through the translucent fabric to begin with. Vegeta looked down momentarily and returned his gaze to Bulma. "There are more interesting things to do here than stand alone in a crowded room…"

Vegeta shrugged Marcy's hand off and continued to ignore her brazen advances. After a few moments in silence, Marcy pulled her blouse closed, huffed angrily, and walked away from Vegeta.

An angry yell caught Vegeta's attention once more and he turned to see Yamcha storm over to Bulma. "Get lost, you goons. She's taken! Go find your own girl!" Vegeta frowned deeper as Yamcha approached Bulma, grabbed her upper arm and forced her to turn around.

"Bulma! What the hell do you think you're wearing? Do you want people to think you're a whore?"

"What are you doing, Yamcha? I was just trying to have a conversation!"

"Right… You might have been talking to those guys, but those guys were talking to your breasts! Come on. I'm taking you home." Vegeta clenched his fists with his arms still by his side. _This guy has some nerve talking to her like that._

"Get off of me! What the hell is your problem?"

"First you come dressed like that. Next, I find out you brought that bastard!" Yamcha pointed across the room and the attention of the whole room followed his direction to Vegeta. "And you don't seem to care at all!"

"Why do you even care, Yamcha? By the way, where's your boyfriend, Jamie? Who's this slut that you've brought along with you?"

"B-boyfriend?" Yamcha looked nervously around the room at the curious stares from his companions. "What are you talking about, Bulma? Boyfriend? Are you crazy? Of course I don't have a boyfriend! That would just be ridiculous!" He turned to the rest of the room and continued, "I can't believe she thought I had a boyfriend! Some of the rumors they spread today, huh?" Yamcha continued to laugh nervously and Bulma glared daggers at him.

"You are so full of it! Just leave me the f*** alone, you f****** bastard!"

"Bitch! How dare you talk to me like that?" Yamcha pulled back his hand and Vegeta saw what was coming. In less than a second, Vegeta was beside Yamcha and he grabbed his arm firmly before he could swing it to slap Bulma.

A cry of alarm rang out through the room as Vegeta appeared from seemingly nowhere. 'Wasn't he just in that corner?' 'How did he get here so fast?' 'Was Yamcha really about to slap Bulma?' 'Yamcha's so strong! How did he stop his arm?'

Yamcha pulled his arm and Vegeta let him out of his hold. Spinning around angrily, Yamcha said, "Vegeta? What are you doing? This is none of your concern!"

Vegeta smirked. "Maybe not, but your obnoxious voice was breaking my concentration."

Yamcha rubbed his forearm where Vegeta had grabbed him and looked over to Bulma. "Why are you protecting her?"

Vegeta chuckled silently. "Let's just put it this way: I really don't like you."

Yamcha yelled angrily, drew back his arm, and punched Vegeta as hard as he could. The whole party went silent, expecting the worst for this stranger. Upon second look, gasps broke out, scattered as they realized what had happened one by one. Vegeta stood, unfazed, with Yamcha's fist firmly in his palm.

"Attacking me? You really are as stupid as I thought you were." Vegeta then pushed Yamcha back using the fist he had just caught and Yamcha flew backwards through the open window behind him.

In the silence that followed, Bulma stepped next to Vegeta and said, "I could have handled it myself."

Vegeta crossed his arms and smirked. "I guess I'll just stay home next time, then." Bulma rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

The party started coming alive again. 'What did you do?' 'You just threw Yamcha out of a 15th story window!' 'He's probably dead!' 'You killed him!' The outcry of the crowd distracted anyone besides Bulma and Vegeta noticed Yamcha fly up and land on the patio of the apartment.

"Quit your whining! He's unfortunately back and in perfect condition." The party turned their attention to even angrier Yamcha standing, fists clenched, outside. The people who knew him at the party viewed him as easily the strongest person they ever knew. How was this short stranger overpowering him?

Vegeta had had enough of this attention and drama. He turned to Bulma. "I'm leaving. I'll fly back if I have to."

"No, I'm coming, too. There's no reason for me to stay any longer." Bulma grabbed Vegeta's arm and shot a glare at Yamcha, still fuming on the patio.

Driving back to Capsule Corp., Bulma was silent. _What could she be thinking about? What does it even matter? It's not like I care…_ Vegeta turned his head to look out the passenger window. _How could I have shown such weakness in front of so many people? Defending a woman while my pride is shattered wearing these ridiculous garments is shameful!_ Vegeta closed his eyes and smirked. _I have to admit that seeing that weakling Yamcha get put in his place was fun._

Still silent, Bulma pulled the car up the driveway and parked. Inside, Vegeta headed straight for his room. _Time to train. I've wasted enough time already._ Halfway down the hall, Bulma stopped him.

"Vegeta!" Vegeta turned to see Bulma walking up to him. _What the hell could she want now?_

"I just… well… I was wondering if you had any plans to see Marcy again."

"Who?"

"Marcy, the woman who hosted the party... 'Naughty Schoolgirl' costume…" Vegeta had no idea what she was talking about and it showed on his face. Bulma rolled her eyes and bit her lip nervously. "You know… the woman who threw herself at you while I was talking to those guys?"

A hazy memory of some woman bugging him while he was keeping an eye on Bulma came to his mind. Something about making the party more enjoyable… "No. Why would you think that? Do you think I have time to worry about stupid women?" Vegeta noticed a look of relief before he turned away again towards his room.

"Vegeta..."

"What now?" Vegeta frowned deeply as he turned around for another interruption, this time to see Bulma wringing her hands nervously.

Bulma was avoiding Vegeta's face. "I-I-I… I just wanted to… to thank you, for… for everything tonight." Vegeta stood there, confused. _What is she trying to get from me, now?_ Vegeta stood, unmoving, waiting for some following comment or request. Bulma walked closer to him and hesitated before she leaned in and kissed him lightly on the lips. Before Vegeta could say anything, or even register what had happened, Bulma disappeared into her bedroom.

_What's going on? Why do I feel pleased? It was nothing! A little kiss is nothing!_ Vegeta shook his head and continued towards his room. _Great. Weakness. I'll have to train extra hard, now, to overcome it._

* * *

_And at a time like this? What could I have been thinking? This is ridiculous. There must be something wrong. Did I read it correctly? Yes… definitely positive. There has to be some mistake. Maybe it's a faulty test! That's gotta be it, right?_ Bulma looked down at the small stick in her hand with the undeniable line visible, betraying the secret that she mostly already knew.

Throwing the test in the trash bin next to the toilet where she was sitting, Bulma buried her face in her palms, willing herself to stay calm. _There's no reasonable way I can deny it. This test is 93% accurate. I'm pregnant._ At that thought, Bulma's breathing quickened and tears pricked in her eyes.

_How could I have let this happen? I've been so careful before Vegeta… it has to be his. There's no doubt in my mind about that. The only other person's it could be is Yamcha, but he was always careful, like, creepily careful._ Bulma sighed deeply and wiped the tears that had escaped her eyes.

_Well, there's no use crying about it. It's not going to change things, and it's definitely not going to solve anything. _Bulma stood up and breathed slowly. _What do I need to do now? I guess I'll need to tell Vegeta, but how am I going to go about doing that? Maybe I should prepare him a big meal with everything he likes… would that even be worth it? I don't know if he'll even listen to me._

Bulma exited the bathroom and paced around her bedroom, thinking. _Maybe it would be best if I just came right out and said it. Be blunt, it's what he would do if he needed to tell anyone anything. Plus, he can't accuse me of wasting his time if I'm quick about it… right? I guess that's what I'll do then: fast and simple._

As she opened the door and walked down the hall, Bulma's stomach turned nervously. She had never been so afraid of saying anything to Vegeta since she had first seen him in person on Namek. Somehow, telling Vegeta that he was the father of her child was more nerve-wracking than watching him fly off with Krillin, Gohan, and the Dragon Ball, knowing that his command had killed Yamcha and the others.

It was a little after noon according to Bulma's watch. _He's training in the Capsule pod right now. Ugh… he's not going to be very happy with me interrupting him._ Bulma made her way to the controls for the pod and pressed the button allowing the communication screen lower in the pod so that she could speak with Vegeta.

The screen clicked to life and she saw Vegeta doing sit-ups. She noticed that the gravity machine was set 350, but he seemed to hardly feel it. Either Vegeta didn't notice Bulma on the screen or he chose to ignore it, but he continued sit-ups disregarding the monitor. Bulma rolled her eyes. "Vegeta?"

Vegeta stopped, stood, and finally looked over to the monitor with his normal frown. "What do you want, woman? I've told you before not to interrupt my training!"

Bulma gulped. "I have something important to tell you."

"It can wait! Nothing is more important than this right now!"

That put Bulma over the edge. "I'll shut down the power, again, if you don't get out here right now!" Vegeta gave an enraged roar of frustration and Bulma watched him prepare to leave the pod.

Bulma's heard started racing faster. _Why did I just do that? I should have waited until later. Then he wouldn't be in a bad mood when I told him. Vegeta not in a bad mood? Oh, never mind. This is as good a time as any._ Bulma walked to the living room and Vegeta entered not long after.

"Get on with it!" Bulma's stomach turned and she felt the nausea creep over her as Vegeta glared at her. "Are you just going to stare at me?" Bulma felt herself starting to hyperventilate and breathed deeply, trying to steady her breathing. Why was this so difficult? It should be a happy moment that she shares with someone she loves instead of a frightening moment with someone she knows doesn't even care. "What is so important that I had to stop my training?"

"I just… I needed to tell you… You see…" Bulma could hardly get the words out of her mouth. She couldn't form the sentence that she needed to.

"Spit it out! I don't have all day!"

_He doesn't have all day? He should be worried about me! He knows I wouldn't interrupt him unless there was a good reason. He has some nerve treating me like this after everything I've done for him! _"Well, fine, Your Highness! I'm pregnant!"

Vegeta's fingers, which had been drumming on his crossed arms, froze. He stared at Bulma, with eyes widened slightly. Vegeta clamped his eyes shut and clenched his fists. Bulma watched him open his eyes slightly and keep his jaw set. "Now is not a good time for playing jokes, woman."

"Jokes? I'm not making a joke, Vegeta! This isn't something to joke about."

Vegeta grunted menacingly and turn his back to Bulma. "How long have you known this?"

"I only found out for sure this morning." Vegeta stood still, his back still to Bulma. She reached out to put her hand on his shoulder, but he moved away as she stretched out her arm, and he began to pace.

Vegeta kept his arms crossed as he walked back and forth. Bulma watched him silently, willing him to say something comforting or even just acknowledging the fact that she was pregnant at all. "Why are you telling me this?" Vegeta asked suddenly.

"Wha- what? I thought you should know…"

"You're trying to distract me from my training! Of course! You still want that weakling Yamcha to succeed!" Bulma shook her head to bring herself back from the shock his statement put her in. _Yamcha? What? What doesn't any of this have to do with him?_

"I knew it! Your silence says it all. I bet it's his! You weren't very discrete about your sex life."

Bulma bit her lip and took several breaths as her anger rose at his words. I am one hundred percent sure that it's yours, Vegeta. But if there is any question about whose it is, I'll know for sure when I go to the doctor."

"How are you so sure of this?"

"Well, Yamcha was especially careful whenever we did anything. He was really paranoid about what Goku told me about a baby. And with you, well, it's always been passionate and spontaneous." Bulma blushed at what she was saying, but even he couldn't deny that it was that way.

Vegeta turned to face her with a deeper frown than usual. "That's not proof! I'll believe it only when there is real proof. It doesn't concern me until then! Don't bother me with such nonsense anymore."

Vegeta walked past a speechless Bulma on his way back to the Capsule pod. As he reached the door, he paused and said, without looking back, "Shouldn't you be telling Yamcha since it could be his?"

Bulma's blood pressure sky-rocketed as Vegeta left without another word. _How could he not believe me! How could he say that about Yamcha! I don't care anything for him, anymore. I can't ever treat him the same way after what he did to me. I wish _Yamcha_ would understand that. He's been calling me, again…_

Bulma reviewed the past couple of messages Yamcha had left on her machine as she walked aimlessly through the house. He wants to talk to her. _Well I don't want to talk to him! I still can't believe the way he'd acted at that party. It's been over for a couple of months now, so why is he calling? I'm with Vegeta now, right? Maybe…? Yamcha wouldn't understand if I told him._

Sighing, Bulma walked to the garden where her mother was feeding several of the animals. _I guess I should tell my parents,_ Bulma thought to herself as she watched her mother. _They'll probably think that Yamcha is the father, but at least they will be happy for me no matter what._

Her mother turned around and waved happily at Bulma as she approached. "Hello honey! How is your day going? Mine is going swell. I'm just feeding some of the animals in the garden. You're father is still in the workshop fixing some more machines for Vegeta."

"Oh, well actually, I need to tell you something."

"Oh alright. What's going on darling?"

"Mom, I'm pregnant." Bulma looked down at her shoes, embarrassed.

"Oh, my! Dear, that's wonderful!" Mrs. Briefs stepped toward Bulma and hugged her tightly. "Oh my goodness! Just imagine! I'm going to be a grandmother! Now dear don't work yourself too hard, now. I know you have a lot on your plate most of the time, but you just need to take it easy so that the baby can grow big and healthy. I mean, what would Vegeta say if something were to happen?"

Bulma's head snapped up as her mother said Vegeta's name. "V-Vegeta? Mom… Mom! How did you know Vegeta is the father?"

"Oh dear, I just knew you would snag him. You're beautiful and smart and you're just so lucky, honey. Vegeta is a great man and wonderful husband material as I said before. I'm going to tell your father. He's going to be so excited when he finds out!" Mrs. Briefs walked along the garden path and Bulma stared after her, blushing harder than she ever had in her life.

_I can't believe my mom knows so much about my sex life. I thought that we were so discrete. Maybe they've known everything all along…_ Bulma's imagination brought her to her very first time with Yamcha, with her parent's ears pressed against the door, laughing. Bulma's stomach turned and she rubbed her faces with the palms of her hands and walked quickly after her mother.

She rounded the corner to the door and found her mother speaking with a delivery man holding a bouquet of roses. "Oh yes, Bulma's right here. Thank you so very much. You are a very nice boy." The delivery boy's eyes seemed glazed over as he nodded and handed the flowers to Mrs. Briefs. Bulma shook her head as her mother closed the door and Mrs. Briefs handed the flowers to Bulma. "That boy was so cute. I wish that he had some time to come in for some cookies and milk or something, but he did seem very busy…"

Bulma looked at the roses. _Please don't be from who I think it is…_ She reached for the small card attached to the bouquet and what she read realized her fears.

"One for every time I've thought of you… Well, I couldn't afford that many, so here's twelve.

Love, Yamcha."

Mrs. Brief's voice brought Bulma back to the present. "Who are they from, dear?"

"No one, Mom," she lied. _No one._ No one to her. _Yamcha, you've gone too far this time._ She was going to have to tell him the truth.

* * *

"No, no, that's fine! I'm free now." Yamcha's hand gripped the phone carefully as not to break it as his heart pounded from the voice on the other end of the line. "Do you want to come over here? No, uh… oh, Capsule Corp.? Yeah, no problem! I'll be there in ten!" Yamcha hung the phone up quickly and raced to his closet for a change of clothes. _I didn't think Bulma was actually going to call me back! Not only that, but she wants to see me tonight at _her_ place! This is better than I ever thought. I can't believe that she hasn't started dating anyone, yet. But how could she settle for anything less than me?_

Yamcha pulled on the suit pants and shirt he'd pulled out. _I bet she's been missing me. Being around Vegeta probably made her realize how awesome I am. _He looked at himself in the mirror and smiled flirtatiously and ran his hand through his hair. _I hope she wants to go out or something. Then again, staying in wouldn't be so bad. I can just see her now, desperate and horny, just waiting to get some of this! Staying in wouldn't be bad at all… unless Vegeta shows up._

Yamcha narrowed his eyes, remembering Vegeta at that stupid party that he had gone to. That was the most humiliating experience of his life. Yamcha slammed his fist down on the table under the mirror, accidentally shattering it. "Damn it!" He glanced at his watch. "Damn it! Five minutes already?" Quickly applying cologne and checking his hair one more time, Yamcha grabbed his keys and raced out the door.

The lights at Capsule Corporation were all still on as Yamcha pulled up. He pulled into the driveway and cut the ignition. His heart started pounding even harder and Yamcha took several deep breaths as he stepped up to the door. _It's been over three months since I've been here. Do I knock? I didn't used to, but that was a while ago…_

Raising his arm ups slightly, he lightly rapped on the front door. The knob turned and Yamcha put his best winning smile on as his stomach turned with the nerves at seeing Bulma again.

And there she was, but not as Yamcha had expected. He had imagined a prim Bulma, dressed in the most recent fashion, make up, and a smile inviting him in. What he saw was a tired-looking Bulma, dressed in a t-shirt and sweatpants and not even the inkling of a smile on her face. "Come on in," she said emotionlessly.

The house was exactly the same as the last time he'd seen it and as Yamcha walked through the door, he remembered the last time he had walked out of it; when he had broken up with Bulma. He didn't regret anything in his life more than that at this moment. Yamcha followed Bulma to center of the room and she sat on the sofa chair and crossed her legs under her Indian-style. Yamcha sat on the sofa adjacent to the seat, feeling more awkward by the second.

Yamcha couldn't take the silence anymore. "The place looks great. Have you done anything to it recently?"

Bulma shook her head absently. "Nope, everything's the same."

Another silence followed. "Have you heard anything from Goku recently?"

"I haven't been out seen really anyone since you…" Bulma's sentence faded off, but Yamcha got the point. After a moment, Bulma looked him straight in the face for the first time since he'd arrived and said, "Yamcha, I have to tell you something."

Yamcha stared for a moment at this odd interruption. "Uh, okay. What's up?"

"There really no better way to say this, but, I'm pregnant."

The last word of her sentence echoed in Yamcha's head. _Pregnant? She's pregnant? Oh s***, this isn't good. Is it mine? It has to be mine, she couldn't have slept with anyone else!_ "How could this have happened? We were so careful!"

"Yes you were, Yamcha, and it worked." Yamcha noticed Bulma looking at him expectantly and didn't understand how she could say that.

"Obviously not, Bulma! You're pregnant! I wouldn't say that it 'worked'!" Yamcha began to hyperventilate and Bulma place her hand on her forehead and shook her head.

"Don't you get it? It's not yours! You can calm down now!"

Yamcha was left speechless once again. _Not mine? What? What does she mean by that?_

"I thought that it would only be decent to tell you in person, since we've been so involved." Yamcha stared blankly at Bulma, and she continued. "I've known for about five days. I went to the doctor and they said I'm two months along." Yamcha studied Bulma carefully, hoping there was a funny punch line in this terrible joke. "I also asked you to come here to ask you nicely to back off. I'm not interested in getting back together with you whatsoever."

The punch line was almost as bad as the joke itself. "It's not mine? Whose is it then?" Yamcha paused, trying to sort out his thoughts. "Is he still around? Does he know?" Anger surged through his body and he stood suddenly as he thought, _I bet it was just some rebound relationship with some jerk and he ran off after he found out she was pregnant._ "I swear, I'm going to f****** murder whoever knocked you up."

Bulma furrowed her brows angrily, rolled her eyes, and leaned back in the chair. "Shut up, Yamcha. Before I answer anything, I want you to register that I _do not_ want to get back together with you."

_She doesn't want to get back together?_ "What the hell did you drag me out here for?"

"Listen, jerk! You are the one calling and sending me flowers. I need you to LAY OFF and I thought the truth about why would be best." Yamcha flopped back on the sofa and fumed, wishing there was something about that statement he could counter.

"Woman! There something wrong with the gravity-" Vegeta's voice sounded from the kitchen and Bulma winced and massaged her temple with her fingers.

"Not now, Vegeta! I'm busy."

"I need it fixed now! Someone has to fix it if your father isn't here." The kitchen door violently swung open and Vegeta walked into the room, a towel around his neck and a cup of water in his hand. Yamcha saw Vegeta spot him and smirk. "I see from your expression that you've heard the news."

The cocky chuckle that Vegeta uttered would have sent Yamcha over the edge if he hadn't already been infuriatingly confused. _Vegeta knows? Why would she tell him before me? What does _he_ have to do with it?_

"I'm not going to fix it right now, Vegeta! You're going to have to wait until tomorrow, alright?" Bulma stood up and walked towards him. Yamcha stared blankly at the chair she just vacated, thinking.

"Stupid woman! Can't you see that this is more important than telling this bastard about a child that isn't his?"

_Vegeta's talking about it like he's known for a while. She's only known for five days. That's not really enough time to warrant telling someone you hate that you're pregnant. Maybe he found out on accident…_

"You have some nerve!" Bulma sounded like she was going to bite Vegeta's head off, but her next sentence was in a much calmer, softer tone. "Listen. I don't know how long this is going to take, but I'll fix whatever's wrong with the pod when I'm done."

"Why should I, the Prince of all Saiyans, have to wait?"

_Bulma said that she's known for five days and she's two months pregnant. We've been broken up for over three months. It really can't be mine! But whose is it then? _

Bulma placed her hand gently on Vegeta's arm. "Please, Vegeta. I promise I'll get it fixed as soon as I'm done."

_She said that she hadn't seen anybody or been out since we've been over. The only man she's been in contact with has been…_ Yamcha's eyes darted over to Vegeta and Bulma. Bulma's hand still rested gently on Vegeta's forearm and Vegeta was looking at her looking almost like he was thinking about something that the conversation definitely wasn't about. … _VEGETA!_

Vegeta abruptly walked past Bulma, throwing an arrogant smirk at Yamcha's telling face, and continued down the hall to his room as Yamcha desperately scrambled to compose his thoughts. Finally finding his tongue, Yamcha yelled, "HIM! HE'S THE FATHER!"

Bulma jumped and whipped around to face Yamcha. She opened her mouth to reply, but Yamcha cut her off, starting a furious rant. "How could you do that? Are you that much of a whore that you would stoop so low as to sleep with Vegeta? Don't you remember he's responsible for my death not too long ago? How! How could you f****** do that to me?"

Bulma's lips were pursed and she walked purposely over to the chair she had left with her arms crossed and fists clenched. Yamcha just glared, too angry to speak. "Yes, Yamcha," Bulma responded after a moment. "Vegeta is the father."

A new rage swept over Yamcha and he stood up ready to kill whatever or whoever came close enough to him next. "Why? Why him! There are better choices than him!"

Bulma gave an incredulous look at his outcry. "Who? You? If I recall correctly, 'Mr. Wonderful' _you_ were cheating on _me_… WITH A MAN!"

Yamcha was simply seething. _Who is she to say that to me? Doesn't she realize this is all her fault? _"I wouldn't have had to if-"

"If what, Yamcha?" Bulma interrupted angrily. "If I had put out more? That's probably all you ever wanted from me!"

Yamcha froze, feeling the slap exponentially harder than if she had actually hit him. _How did she make this about me? _ "What about… HIM!" Yamcha pointed hard in the direction of Vegeta's room. "He knows your pregnant and doesn't even care!"

That seemed to hit a nerve in Bulma. Yamcha victoriously watched her composure falter and thought back to the last time he had seen Bulma. "_And_ you had the gall to bring him to the awful party?" Bulma shut her eyes for a moment and opened them, looking expectantly at Yamcha. He continued, letting his anger and frustration spill out into words. "How long had you been seeing him, anyway? If you thought _I_ was using you for sex, what about him?"

"You. Are. Such. A. F******. Bastard." Bulma's voice was venomous, dripping with all the contained fury from the past couple of minutes. "I invited you here to try to tell you nicely to stop calling and leaving messages and sending flowers because _I'm not interested_. I'm with Vegeta now."

Yamcha laughed sarcastically. "Does he know that?"

Bulma breathed in through her teeth and ran her palms over her face and through her hair grabbing it in her fists on top of her head. "This was a huge mistake," she muttered.

"Finally some sense! Why weren't you more careful?"

"No, dumb ass!" screamed Bulma, finally losing the cool that she had barely managed to maintain through the conversation. "Asking you to come here was the mistake!" Bulma jumped to her feet and stormed over to the front door, opening it wide. "I never want to see you again! Get out!"

"I was just leaving, anyway. This has nothing to do with me! I don't even care anymore." Yamcha walked to the door and paused, turning his head to Bulma and whispering fiercely, "Sleep with whoever you want. Just don't expect me to feel sorry for you when Vegeta lets you down." Yamcha once again had the sick satisfaction of seeing angry tears running down her face.

_Serves her right! How could Vegeta be her boyfriend? Sex partner? How could that have even happened? Whatever! Screw her! I don't give a damn. She's not worth it._

* * *

The summer sun shone brilliantly as Bulma lay stretched out on a lawn chair in the yard, her newest edition of _Science Weekly_ in her hand. Her left hand rested on her round bare stomach as she lounged in her bright purple micro bikini. Men walking by on the street blatantly stared at her rocking body, despite the fact that she was six months pregnant. Bulma fixed her hair and adjusted the sunglasses as another gawking man passed Capsule Corporation, smiling to herself. _I still got it_.

A hissing from the pod indicated the door opened and Vegeta walked out, drinking the last contents in a water bottle he was holding. Bulma glanced at him and quickly pretended to be engrossed in her magazine. Moments later, Vegeta appeared next to her and asked impatiently, "What do you think you're doing?"

Bulma continued 'reading' her magazine. "Working on my tan. Duh!" Another staring man walked past and out of the corner of her eye she saw Vegeta glare dangerously at him, causing the passerby to run away as fast as he could. Bulma smirked at his reaction and sat up.

Vegeta proceeded to glare at anyone who happened to be walking on the street in front of Capsule Corp. "You do realize you're pregnant, right?"

Emotion struck Bulma violently and tears immediately sprung to her eyes. "How could you say that? Do _you_ ever remember that I'm pregnant? You ignore me if I don't do things like this! Why don't you care? He's your son!"

Vegeta paused upon hearing her last statement. Bulma hadn't told him the gender until now. "Son?" Vegeta looked at Bulma, slightly surprised at her revelation. "It- it's a boy?"

Bulma took a calming breath and nodded, smiling once again to herself. _He actually seems interested, for once._ Vegeta stared at the ground and crossed his arms, but Bulma could see the hint of a smirk on his lips. That small indication of pride caused her heart to leap.

Immediately, Bulma felt a kick from the baby. Smiling wide, she rubbed her stomach and turned to Vegeta. "He's kicking. Do you want to feel?" Before Vegeta could respond, or even digest what she had said, Bulma grabbed his hand and place it on her belly.

"Woman! What the hel-" Vegeta's protest was cut off as he felt the thump against his palm and a rare shocked look crossed his face. "What is that?"

Bulma laughed lightly. "That's your baby, stupid. It's Trunks."

Bulma watched as Vegeta fought to keeps his wits about him. He pulled his hand away from her stomach. "Trunks? That's a stupid name."

Bulma stood up and placed her hands on her hips. "Stupid? You're the one who's stupid if you think you have any say in his name after all I've been through…" Bulma's objection faded off as Vegeta turned around halfway through it and walked to the house. "Where are you going, Vegeta?"

"Are you going to make me dinner or not?"

"In your dreams. Not after what you just said." Vegeta frowned and walked through the sliding glass door into the kitchen.

_At least I got what I wanted… and I told him the gender without having to make a special arrangement._ _I hope he doesn't ignore me all the time, now, knowing that I'm throwing myself out there on purpose to gain his attention._

Bulma had been trying to catch Vegeta's eye by any means in the past six months. There were some sure-fire ways to do it, as she had found through much trial-and-error: walking past him in a small towel and letting it slip a little, certain articles of clothing _always_ worked, doing things like she'd done just now in a bikini (especially in the winter)…

A clang from the kitchen jarred Bulma back to the present. _I should probably go ahead and help him with the food before he destroys the kitchen._ Walking up to the glass door, Bulma watched as Vegeta opened cabinets and the refrigerator looking more and more like he was actually going to blow up the kitchen.

"What am I supposed to eat?" Vegeta reached into the freezer and pulled out a frozen chicken breast. He turned to the stove and started messing with the dials. "How do you work this thing?" After a moment, Vegeta stepped back from the appliance. "Never mind. I'll do it myself." And he aimed his right hand at the chicken in his left.

_Oh crap!_ Bulma slid the door open frantically. "No! Stop! Vegeta! I'll help you. Please, don't destroy the kitchen."

"I was just trying to feed myself, as you so graciously refused to do. There's nothing to eat, anyway. Are you trying to starve me?"

"You're hopeless. Just sit down and stop talking." Bulma stooped to a cabinet to grab a few pans and placed them on the stove. Grabbing the chicken breast out of Vegeta's hand, as well as a few others from the freezer, Bulma began cooking. She'd forgotten she was still wearing her micro bikini until Vegeta's strong hands on her nearly-bare hips reminded her.

Vegeta's hands ran along her bare back and over parts off-limits to most. Bulma swooned in a way only his touch could make her do so. Vegeta didn't play games and Bulma knew what he wanted. _I know this isn't good, but why, again?_ A small thump in her abdomen reminded her quickly.

Bulma's fuzzy thoughts cleared when she finally remembered why she shouldn't have sex. She turned and patiently removed Vegeta's hands, pushing him away gently.

The lust in Vegeta's face remained as annoyance entered his features. "What is this?"

Bulma placed her hand on the counter behind her to steady herself. Something about Vegeta when he got like this was nearly impossible to resist. "Don't you want to eat? I thought you were starving."

Vegeta frowned and stepped closer to Bulma, placing his hands on her hips, again, and eyeing her longingly. "There's something that I need a little more than food right now," and he leaned forward and nipped her neck.

Bulma's voice was faint as Vegeta kissed along her neck. "Vegeta," she finally managed. "We… we can't."

Vegeta pulled back suddenly with a deeper frown. "Why the hell not? It's a little late to be developing chastity."

Bulma frowned back at him. "The doctor said it wouldn't be good for the baby."

"How is today any different from last week?"

"I saw the doctor yesterday and he said…" Bulma blushed as she recalled the conversation she had with the doctor the day before. "He said that I should stop having sex."

Vegeta's eyebrows rose slowly. "Whatever," he replied shortly, and he took a seat. Bulma gave him a look as he glared at the floor and resumed cooking. "We haven't done anything to hurt it, have we?" Vegeta asked detachedly after a moment.

Bulma looked over her shoulder at him and furrowed her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Is it… is he… healthy?"

Bulma looked back to the food she was preparing and smiled. "The doctor said that he's doing great. Well developed for this stage." Bulma chanced a peek at Vegeta and saw, to her immense pleasure, had another proud smirk across his face. She turned her attention back to the food.

"Damn it, woman! How long are you going to starve me? I have training I need to get back to!"

* * *

Vegeta sat moodily next to a 9 months pregnant Bulma with his eyes closed as she wrote down plan after plan in a small notebook and rambled.

"How are we going to get to the hospital?" Vegeta felt Bulma turn toward him on the couch in the living room and he cracked open one eye to glance at her. "Come on, Vegeta! This is important!"

"Important?" Vegeta said, finally. "This is a waste of time! Why does any of this matter?" He stood up and walked around the back of the couch.

Bulma stood up as well, struggling with her large belly, and frowned at Vegeta. "Unless you want me giving birth in that precious pod of yours, I suggest you stay here and help!"

Vegeta turned his back to her and said, "Fine! What is there to do anyway?"

Bulma started talking once more about the things she wrote down in her notebook. Who was going to be in the delivery room? Who calls the doctor? How were they getting to the hospital? Vegeta didn't understand why she needed him here. "Can't we just assume that your parents are going to take care of all of that?"

Bulma frowned once more. "I want you to be there," she hissed angrily

"Well, I don't want to be there!"

"Don't even go there, Vegeta. You put this baby in me and you better be there when it comes out!"

Crossing his arms, Vegeta walked back and forth behind the couch. "Hmph."

Bulma stared at him a few moments before continuing the planning. Vegeta continued to pace, hearing, but not listening to Bulma. _This has been far too much trouble, _he thought bitterly. _If we were on Vegeta, I wouldn't have to deal with this mess._

"Vegeta…"

_I'm a man, not to mention a Prince! I'm not supposed to have to be involved in these stupid matters._

"Vegeta!"

_Why must I have to pamper this woman when all she has to do is pop the damn thing out!_

"VEGETA!" Vegeta whipped around as Bulma screamed his name. She was standing with her hands on her stomach and a manic look on her face.

"What?" Vegeta answered shortly.

"I just thought you might like to know that _I'm about to have a baby!_"

Vegeta stomach flipped as she said these words. "Impossible! You're not due to deliver for another week."

"Your son's ready now!" Bulma screeched, panicked. "My water just broke!"

Vegeta stomach did another, harder, flip. He tried to keep his voice steady. "What am I supposed to do about that?"

Bulma rolled her eyes and threw the notebook at him, exasperated. "Did you not listen to anything?" Vegeta just shrugged. "Ugh! Fine! Go find my parents and tell them we need to get to the hospital. I need to go pack a bag."

Vegeta nodded stiffly and walked slowly away from Bulma toward her father's lab. Once he knew he was out of sight of Bulma, he picked up his pace.

The whirr of computers and clicking of a keyboard reached Vegeta's ears as he entered Dr. Briefs's laboratory. Vegeta entered and leaned against the wall next to Dr. Briefs who was currently engrossed in a schematic on the computer screen.

"Vegeta! To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" Dr. Briefs turned to him. "Equipment needing repairs already?"

"Hm…? No… no. Bulma needs to get to the hospital, is all." Bulma's father looked at him curiously. "It appears that baby decided that today was a good day to be born."

Dr. Briefs blinked a few times before comprehending what Vegeta had just said and jumped up from his seat. "What?" He paced around excitedly. "Oh… oh, oh, oh! Oh my! Well, I'll need to find Mrs. Briefs and we'll need to get everything into the car and… oh my goodness! I'll be a grandfather!"

Dr. Briefs scampered out of the lab and Vegeta followed with the quicker pace he had adopted before, intending to find Bulma. He found her in the garage leaning against her parent's car, pain lining her features and her left hand pressed to the side of her belly. _Oh my god! What's happening? Is she alright? Is the baby okay?_

"Bulma!" Vegeta rushed over to her, but she reached out her left hand to stop him.

"Don't. Touch. Me." She managed through gritted teeth, "It's almost over." After several moments Bulma became more relaxed and breathed deeply. Vegeta watched as she looked at her watch, thinking. "Contractions are still 10 minutes apart. We're doing fine on time."

Vegeta looked down at Bulma as she smiled up at him. He turned away, ashamed of his display of concern he showed for the woman. "You're parents know, but I don't know where they are."

Several silent minutes passed before Dr. and Mrs. Briefs appeared laden with suitcases and all sorts of useless junk. "It never hurts to be prepared," Bulma's father quipped happily as he started loading the random load in the car.

"Ooh, I'm just so excited to meet my grandson," Mrs. Briefs said merrily. "Aren't you excited, Vegeta?"

"Ecstatic," Vegeta replied emotionlessly. _Oh my god, these people are insufferable._ Out of the corner of his eye, Vegeta saw Bulma glare at his sarcastic remark.

"I called the doctor already, Bulma." Dr. Briefs had finished loading the car and addressed his daughter. "He'll be waiting for you to arrive."

"Thanks dad," she replied, still staring dangerously at Vegeta. "I'll drive."

Vegeta whipped his head around to look directly at Bulma. _She's in no condition to drive. What if she gets hurt? What if the baby gets hurt?_ He shook his head, trying to organize his thoughts and spoke to Bulma. "If you're going to be at risk of having another fit like you just had while you drive, I'm not going!"

Bulma's glare turned murderous as Vegeta spoke. "Oh, no you don't. You're not getting out that easily. Dad, you drive." Vegeta smirked at Bulma's anger, but his previous worries were eased at Dr. Briefs climbed into the driver's seat and started the car.

They pulled up to the reception area of the hospital and checked Bulma in. Vegeta looked around at the people and equipment and marveled. _What a primitive race! It's no wonder every human I've met has been a complete weakling. They can't even heal minor cut quickly. These people wouldn't have a chance if it wasn't for the clown Kakarot!_

Vegeta looked around and realized that Bulma and her parents had disappeared. "Oh, Vegeta!" Confused, Vegeta turned around and looked back up the hall he had been walking down and saw Mrs. Briefs's head sticking out of a door way quite a ways down the hall. "We're in here, sweetie."

Vegeta took his time walking back down the hall to the room where Bulma and her parents currently were. When he entered, he saw Bulma walking stiffly around the room, one hand on her back, the other holding a pole with a bag of clear fluid connected by a tube to Bulma's arm. Bulma looked up at Vegeta, frowned, and pointed to a single chair along the wall of the room. "Sit," She ordered, irritated. "You're there unless there's an emergency."

Vegeta huffed loudly and flopped into the hard plastic chair. He shifted around, trying to get comfortable in the seat, but to no avail. "Could I at leave have a more comfortable prison."

Bulma had stopped walking and had that same pained expression on that she wore when Vegeta had found her in the garage. "No!" She was practically screaming. "You sit there and don't move unless I say!"

"I would rather stand."

"Too, f******, bad. You're sitting." Vegeta leaned back in the chair and watched as Bulma resumed her slow pacing around the room. He shut his eye, inconspicuously. _At least I'll be able to train mentally, if I can't train physically._ Bulma's voice broke through his thoughts.

"Don't even think about it, Vegeta." Vegeta opened his eyes and glared at Bulma. "When I say you're here, it's 100%. No dozing. No training. Nothing!"

"Nothing? How do you expect me to get any stronger if you keep making me do nothing?"

"I only expect you to stay aware of what is happening. That goes for when this baby finally comes, too. Get used to it!"

Her last statement caused his mind to reel. _Those androids are going to require me to be at my peak strength and I'm not even a Super Saiyan. I'll never complete my training with this woman and whatever being comes out of her around._ Vegeta looked at Bulma, hunched over painfully once more. "Ah!" Her cry of pain made Vegeta want to comfort her; to help her. He shook his head violently. _What am I thinking? This woman is nothing but a distraction._

"They're getting worse," Bulma whimpered to her mom. "Is it always like this?"

Vegeta smirked at her reaction. _She must be overreacting. I'm sure I've been through much worse pain._

"Oh honey when you were born, I thought that it might be the hardest thing I've even done. I'm pretty sure deciding which color to paint the guest bathroom was harder, though." Bulma looked at her mother in shock and Vegeta had to hold back a laugh. _Does that woman ever say anything intelligent?_

A knock on the door signaled the arrival of Bulma's doctor. "Alright, Ms. Briefs. Please get up on the bed." Bulma lay down and placed her feet on the stirrups. "I'm going to check how dilated you are. Bulma nodded and Vegeta watched carefully as the doctor walked over to the bed.

_What the hell?_ Vegeta's eyes widened as the doctor reached for the hospital gown and lifted it. Vegeta' stood up suddenly, livid. _What the hell does that bastard think he's doing? _The chair he vacated fell into a useless pile against the opposite wall.

The doctor stared Vegeta, startled at his actions. Bulma was glaring at him again, her eyes telling him not to move and daring him to disobey her. Vegeta stood still, watching Bulma expectantly. _Surely she's not going to let this sick bastard look between her legs, just like that!_

"Vegeta, sit down." Her words were quiet, but demanding. Walking to another, equally uncomfortable chair, Vegeta sat, grumbling silently to himself.

"Everything is looking normal, Ms. Briefs. I'll be back in a little while to check on you again. You probably won't be ready to deliver for another couple of hours."

"Thanks, doctor," Bulma replied and the doctor left the room.

_Another couple of hours?_ Vegeta protested to himself.

Bulma let out another painful groan. "Vegeta! Come here! Bring your chair." Vegeta walked over to the bed and Bulma grabbed his hand as the contraction continued.

_This woman has some grip._ Vegeta looked at Bulma lying back on the bed, her hand clutching mercilessly to his own. _I don't think I can handle another couple of hours of this._ Eventually, Bulma released Vegeta's hand and he sat in his relocated chair-prison. Bulma glowered at Vegeta as he seated himself.

"What was _that_ about?" Bulma asked savagely.

"What was what about?"

"The whole thing with the doctor and the broken chair… What's your problem?"

Vegeta froze, looking at the opposite wall which once held the chair he had destroyed. He was at a loss for words. _Shouldn't this be obvious to her? _"I… well… that man lifted up… looked at your…"

Bulma's eyes widened slightly and the same sly smirk she always wore when she was about to make Vegeta feel stupid appeared on her face. The same sly smirk she wore so many times during their complicated relationship that drove him crazy. That infuriating, sexy, distracting smirk. "Yes, Vegeta. That's what he's supposed to do. The baby's going to come out down there."

"Shouldn't a woman, at least, be taking care of that?" Bulma laughed. The sound made Vegeta's heart skip and the corners of his mouth pulled up slightly before and shook his head hard once more, frowned, and looked away from her.

An hour and a half later, the doctor announced that Bulma was ready for delivery. Vegeta sat rigidly by Bulma's bed with his arms crossed. _Finally! Something's about to happen. Sitting through hour and a half of heavy breathing and hand holding is maddening!_

The nurses wheeled Bulma out the door to the delivery room, but Vegeta remained behind. A moment after the bed was out of sight, he heard Bulma shrieking down the hall. "Vegeta! Get your ass over here, now!" Vegeta closed his eyes, took a quick breath, and followed the bed out the door and down the hall to the delivery room. Entering the room, he found Bulma in another contraction, looking fiercely at him. "You. Are. Such. An. Ass."

"You told me not to move." Vegeta smirked as she let out a frustrated groan.

"Shut up and give me your hand."

"Here he is Ms. Briefs." The doctor handed their son, Trunks, to Bulma. Vegeta watched as Bulma cradled Trunks lovingly and cooed and something lurched in his chest. Turning wordlessly, Vegeta left the room and found Dr. and Mrs. Briefs sitting in the hall looking expectant.

"He's out." Bulma's parents shouted delightfully and rushed past Vegeta to where Bulma lay with Trunks, his son.

Vegeta walked back to the room where they had been kept before and sat in the same chair he'd been in for almost three hours that day. _What is this feeling? It's just a baby! But it's my son. My son! _Vegeta crossed his arms. _Why would I do this? I'm a Saiyan Prince! An elite warrior! I long for battle and blood. What does this make Trunks? My blood has been mixed with a human nobody… with Bulma…_

Vegeta buried his head in his hands roughly. _My concentration is shattered. Why do I feel this way? It's just a baby! It's my son… It's going to be like starting over in my training. I'm already way behind and now I'll have to start over. I can't do this. I can't deal with all of this._

The door swung open and a nurse wheeled Bulma's bed into the room with an exhausted Bulma and his newborn son. Vegeta watched as the nurse made sure Bulma was comfortable and told her to let her know if Bulma needed anything and left, leaving Bulma, Vegeta, and Trunks alone.

Several minutes passed before Bulma broke the silence. "My parents went to go get something to eat." Vegeta nodded, but said nothing. "I told them to bring you half the food court back if they could." Again, Vegeta nodded. Another silence fell between them. "Vegeta, come here."

Vegeta stood and walked slowly to the edge of the bed, trying not to look at Bulma or Trunks. _What could she possibly want? The nurse gave her everything already._ Finally, Vegeta frowned and looked down at the pair in the bed. The same lurch in his chest from before hit him and he longed to leave. Leave the unfamiliar feelings. Leave the confusion and distraction. But something wouldn't let him.

Bulma held out Trunks to Vegeta. "Take him… please." Her tone was pleading and the uncomfortable feel hit him once more. Vegeta reached out and took the small bundle. "Careful with his head. Support his back," Bulma coached.

Vegeta looked down at the sleeping Trunks. _This is my son… My son… This is my son… But I can't be distracted… My son… This child is a distraction._ Vegeta glanced at Bulma, looking fondly up at Vegeta and Trunks. _I have multiple distractions on my life, now._

Vegeta carefully handed Trunks back to Bulma and turned away from them, his mind was racing; his chest aching. Bulma began rambling happily. "I think when we get home we should start turning the spare bedroom into a nursery."

_I can't stay. I won't be ready. I won't be able to train. I won't be able to protect… I won't be stronger than Kakarot!_

"I thought I would have him in my room, but with how much he's cried so far, I think he needs to be a little further away."

_I can't be distracted anymore. I need to focus on my training. I can't have anything standing in my way._

"That way if he cries, either of us could-"

"I'm leaving." Silence once again filled the room.

"Don't you even think about it, Vegeta." Bulma's voice conveyed her annoyance. "You're not going home without me."

_She doesn't get it! _"Stupid woman! I'm leaving. I'm going away in the Pod."

"Wh-what?" The annoyance had fallen out of her voice and all that was replaced with bewilderment.

Vegeta kept his back to her as he continued. "I'm going where you can't bother me or interrupt my training. I'll be back when the androids arrive."

"But… Vegeta, what about our son?" Bulma's voice was shaking, now. "What about Trunks."

Vegeta shut his eyes tight as the ache in his chest intensified and he put all his effort into keeping his voice steady. "He's just another distraction."

"Vegeta…" the pain in Bulma's voice was evident. "Vegeta, please don't go."

Her pain pained him. _Why is this so hard? She's just a stupid woman with a stupid baby! I have to do this!_

Vegeta felt Bulma grab his hand and he turned around to face her, keeping his face expressionless. "Vegeta, please. I _need _you here. I… I love you."

The pain in his chest increased dramatically. He turned away, unable to keep the emotion from his face and said, coldly, "I don't need or want your love," before walking to the open window and flying away.

Bulma's sobs followed him as well as the subsequent cries from Trunks. Vegeta gritted his teeth and flew faster, hoping that the sooner he left the sooner he would forget how much of a lie his last words to Bulma were.


End file.
